Deel
/diːl/noun
A tree of the mahogany family, usually identified as the chinaberry or Persian lilac tree (Melia azedarach).
Did you know?The deel’s fruit has been used to make beads, giving the tree the common English name “bead tree,” although its seeds and foliage can be toxic.
Etymological Timeline
18th Century
English
deel
“An English botanical name for an East Indian tree.”
18th Century
Anglo-Indian English
deel
“A name used in colonial English descriptions of the tree Melia azedarach.”
18th–19th Century
English
deel tree
“The tree later commonly called chinaberry, Persian lilac, or bead tree.”
19th Century
English
deel
“A standardized dictionary and botanical term for Melia azedarach.”
Modern English
English
deel
“An uncommon name for the chinaberry or Persian lilac tree.”
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