anise

plural anises

1. countableuncountableAn umbelliferous plant (Pimpinella anisum) growing naturally in Egypt, and cultivated in Spain, Malta, etc., for its carminative and aromatic seeds, which are used as a spice. It has a licorice scent.

   A concoction consisting of saffron, orange blossoms, dried dates, anise, wild carrots, and egg yolk, boiled in clear water into which honey and the blood of two freshly killed doves have been poured, is recommended by Arabs as a sexual inducement.

   1961, Harry E. Wedeck, Dictionary of Aphrodisiacs, New York: The Citadel Press, page 212

2. UScountableuncountableoften qualified as "sweet anise" or "wild anise"Fennel, Foeniculum vulgare.

   […] of the butcherbirds which were perched on the electric wires skirting the road must be nesting birds, and that in the absence of trees or brush they must be nesting in some of the weeds along the highway, mostly anise (Foeniculum vulgare).

   1934, The Gull (Golden Gate Audubon Society), volumes 16-29, page 25