/kwosh"euh, -ee euh/ , n.
1. a shrub or small tree, Quassia amara, of tropical America, having pinnate leaves, showy red flowers, and wood with a bitter taste. Cf. quassia family .
2. any of several other trees having bitter-tasting wood.
3. Also called bitterwood . Chem., Pharm. a prepared form of the heartwood of any of these trees, used as an insecticide and in medicine as a tonic to dispel intestinal worms.
[ 1755-65; Quassi, 18th-century slave in Dutch Guiana who discovered its medicinal properties; see -IA ]