SARSAPARILLA

noun Etymology: Spanish zarzaparrilla, from zarza bush + parrilla, diminutive of parra vine Date: 1577 1. any of various tropical American greenbriers, the dried roots of a ~ used especially as a flavoring, any of various plants (as wild ~) that resemble or are used as a substitute for ~, a sweetened carbonated beverage flavored with sassafras and oil distilled from a European birch