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mescal in British English
(mɛˈskæl)
noun
1. Also called: peyote
a spineless globe-shaped cactus, Lophophora williamsii, of Mexico and the southwestern US. Its button-like tubercles (mescal buttons) contain mescaline and are chewed by certain Native American tribes for their hallucinogenic effects
2.
a colourless alcoholic spirit distilled from the fermented juice of certain agave plants
Word origin
C19: from American Spanish, from Nahuatl mexcalli the liquor, from metl maguey + ixcalli stewmescal in American English
(meˈskæl)
noun
1.
an intoxicating beverage distilled from the fermented juice of certain species of agave
2.
any agave yielding this spirit
3. Also called: peyote
either of two species of spineless, dome-shaped cactus, Lophophora williamsii or L. diffusa, of Texas and northern Mexico, yielding the hallucinogen peyote
Word origin
[1695–1705, Amer.; ‹ MexSp mescal, mezcal, mexcal ‹ Nahuatl mexcalli intoxicant distilled from agave (perh. equiv. to me(tl) maguey + (i)xcalli something cooked)]Image ofmescal
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