Margosa
/mɑːrˈɡəʊzə/noun
A neem tree, especially the tropical tree Azadirachta indica, or its bitter leaves and products.
Did you know?Margosa entered English through Portuguese, whose form reflects the tree’s intensely bitter taste rather than an occult name or magical formula.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*h₂emh₂rós
“Bitter; sharp-tasting — a reconstructed ancestor of the later Latin word.”
Classical Latin
Latin
amarus
“Bitter, harsh, or unpleasant to the taste.”
Medieval Latin
Latin
amarus
“Bitter; the source of Romance descendants describing bitter substances.”
Early Modern Portuguese
Portuguese
amargo / amargosa
“Bitter / the feminine form, used as a name for the bitter neem tree.”
18th Century
English
margosa
“A neem tree or its bitter medicinal leaves, adopted from Portuguese.”
Modern English
English
margosa
“Neem, especially Azadirachta indica, valued in traditional medicine and agriculture.”