acacia

noun

1. a small tree or shrub belonging to the genus Acacia, of the mimosa family, having clusters of small yellow flowers.
2. any of several other plants, as the locust tree.
3. gum arabic.

noun

1. any shrub or tree of the tropical and subtropical leguminous genus Acacia, having compound or reduced leaves and small yellow or white flowers in dense inflorescencesSee also wattle 1 (def. 4)
2. false acacia another name for locust (def. 2), locust (def. 3)
3. gum acacia another name for gum arabic

n.

1540s, from Latin acacia, from Greek akakia “thorny Egyptian tree,” perhaps related to Greek ake “point, thorn,” from PIE root *ak- “sharp” (see acrid). Or perhaps a Hellenization of some Egyptian word. From late 14c. in English as the name of a type of gum used as an astringent, etc.