Bry"o*ny (?), n. [L. bryonia, Gr. , fr. to swell, esp. of plants.] Bot.
The common name of several cucurbitaceous plants of the genus Bryonia. The root of B. alba (rough or white bryony) and of B. dioica is a strong, irritating cathartic.
Black bryony, a plant (Tamus communis) so named from its dark glossy leaves and black root; black bindweed.
© Webster 1913.