Definition of "senna" []

• Any of various plants of the genus Cassia, having pinnately compound leaves and showy, nearly regular, usually yellow flowers. (noun)
• The dried leaves of Cassia angustifolia or C. acutifolia, used medicinally as a laxative. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Arghel_ are used for adulterating senna, _Cassia obovata_ or _C. senna_, also a native of Egypt, cultivated in the East Indies, as well as in Spain, Italy, and Jamaica."
• "[274] _Cañafístulo_: referring to the drug known as senna, which is obtained from the leaves of several species of _Cassia_."
• "I have specimens of the leaves of the officinal senna, which is cultivated successfully by Mr.W. Lucas, of South Carolina, for use on his plantation."