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sam·bu·ca¹

(săm-bkə, säm-bkä)

An ancient triangular stringed instrument.

[Greek sambūkē, from Aramaic sabbəkā, from səbak, to fasten, cling; see śbk in the Appendix of Semitic roots.]

sam·bu·ca²

(săm-bkə, säm-bkä)

An Italian liqueur with the flavor of anise.

[Italian, originally a trade name created by Italian liqueur producer Luigi Manzi (fl. 19th century) from Italian dialectal (Istria) sambuchelli, water carriers distributing water and anise liquor to laborers, from Italian sambuco, elderberry (probably from the traditional use of elder blossom syrup to flavor drinks) , from Latin sambūcus; perhaps akin to Dacian seba.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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