n. [ OE. genciane, F. gentiane, L. gentiana, fr. Gentius, an Illyrian king, said to have discovered its properties. ] (Bot.) Any one of a genus (Gentiana) of herbaceous plants with opposite leaves and a tubular four- or five-lobed corolla, usually blue, but sometimes white, yellow, or red. See Illust. of Capsule. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ Many species are found on the highest mountains of Europe, Asia, and America, and some are prized for their beauty, as the Alpine (Gentiana verna, Gentiana Bavarica, and Gentiana excisa), and the American fringed gentians (Gentiana crinita and Gentiana detonsa). Several are used as tonics, especially the bitter roots of Gentiana lutea, the officinal gentian of the pharmacopoeias. [ 1913 Webster ]

Horse gentian, fever root. --
Yellow gentian (Bot.), the officinal gentian (Gentiana lutea). See Bitterwort. [ 1913 Webster ]

prop. n. The type genus of the Gentianaceae; it is a genus of herbs nearly cosmopolitan in cool temperate regions; in some classifications it includes the genera Gentianopsis and Gentianella.
Syn. -- genus Gentiana. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

prop. n. A natural family of chiefly herbaceous plants with showy flowers; some are cultivated as ornamentals.
Syn. -- family Gentianaceae, gentian family. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

a. (Bot.) Of or pertaining to a natural family of plants (Gentianaceæ) of which the gentian is the type. [ 1913 Webster ]

prop. n. An order of plants including the Gentianaceae; Apocyanaceae; Asclepiadaceae; Loganiaceae; Oleaceae; and Salvadoraceae.
Syn. -- order Gentianales. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ See Gentian. ] A kind of blue color. Johnson. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Pertaining to or derived from the gentian; as, gentianic acid. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Chem.) A bitter, crystallizable substance obtained from gentian. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Chem.) A crystallizable, sugarlike substance, with a slightly sweetish taste, obtained from the gentian. [ 1913 Webster ]