Pronunciation: sh ə - ' m ē -s ə , ch ə -
Variant: or cha · mi · so \ -( ˌ )s ō \
Function: noun
Etymology: American Spanish chamiza, chamizo, ultimately from Spanish chamiza brushwood, kindling, from Portuguese or Galician chamiça, from chama flame, from Latin flamma ― more at FLAME
Date: 1960
1 : a saltbush ( Atriplex canescens ) of the western U.S. and Mexico having winged seeds
2 : a rabbitbrush ( Chrysothamnus nauseosus ) having yellow flowers