Semen \Se"men\, n.; pl. Semina. [L., from the root of serere,
satum, to sow. See Sow to scatter seed.]
1. (Bot.) The seed of plants.
2. (Physiol.) The seed or fecundating fluid of male animals;
sperm. It is a white or whitish viscid fluid secreted by
the testes, characterized by the presence of spermatozoids
to which it owes its generative power.
Semen contra, or Semen cin[ae] or cyn[ae], a strong
aromatic, bitter drug, imported from Aleppo and Barbary,
said to consist of the leaves, peduncles, and unexpanded
flowers of various species of Artemisia; wormseed.
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) |
Artemisia \Ar`te*mi"si*a\ ([aum]rt[-e]"m[i^]zh"[i^]*[.a] or
[aum]rt[-e]"m[i^]sh"[i^]*[.a]), n. [L. Artemisia, Gr.
'Artemisi`a.]
(Bot.)
A genus of plants including the plants called mugwort,
southernwood, and wormwood. Of these A. absinthium, or
common wormwood, is well known, and A. tridentata is the
sage brush of the Rocky Mountain region.
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) |