/tam"euh risk/ , n.
1. any Old World tropical plant of the genus Tamarix, esp. T. gallica, an ornamental Mediterranean shrub or small tree having slender, feathery branches.
2. a shrub or small tree, Tamarix chinensis, of Eurasia, having scalelike leaves and clusters of pink flowers, naturalized in the southwestern U.S., where it has become a troublesome weed.
[ 1350-1400; ME tamariscus tamarix, perh. of Hamitic orig. ]