tabasheer

English

Alternative forms

• tabacheer, tabachir, tabascheer, tabaschir, tabashir, tabaxir

Etymology

Borrowed from Hindi तबाशीर (tabāśīr), which in turn either inherited from Sauraseni Prakrit (less likely, due to the presence of ś, instead of s/kh in the term) or borrowed from Classical Persian تباشیر (tabāšīr, “chalk, clay, plaster; sugar from bamboo, tabasheer”) (more likely), ultimately derived from Sanskrit तवक्षीर (tavakṣīra, “white substance from bamboo, tabasheer”, literally “bark milk”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /təˈbɑː.ʃɪə/, /ˌtʌb.ɑːˈʃɪə/
• (North India, Pakistan) IPA^(key): /ˈt̪ə.bɑː.ˈʃiːɾ/
• (South India) IPA^(key): /t̪əˈbɑː.ʃiːɾ/
• Rhymes: -ɪə(ɹ)

Noun

tabasheer (countable and uncountable, plural tabasheers)

1. A translucent white substance, composed mainly of silica and water with traces of lime and potash, obtained from the nodal joints of some species of bamboo and used in traditional Asian medicine.

Synonyms

• banslochan