My*rob"a*lan (?), My*rob"o*lan (?), n. [L. myrobalanum the fruit of a palm tree from which a balsam was made, Gr. ; any sweet juice distilling from plants, any prepared unguent or sweet oil + an acorn or any similar fruit: cf. F. myrobolan.]
A dried astringent fruit much resembling a prune. It contains tannin, and was formerly used in medicine, but is now chiefly used in tanning and dyeing. Myrobolans are produced by various species of Terminalia of the East Indies, and of Spondias of South America.
© Webster 1913.