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Cannabis sativa

Cannabis sativa

6.7
A tall plant from Asia with smelly leaves grown for fiber, medicine, and drugs that change the mind
  • noun
  • /ˈkænəbɪs ˈseɪtəvə/
  • NSFW
translation icon : Cannabis sativa
  • In many regions, Cannabis sativa is cultivated for its medicinal properties and psychoactive effects.

Examples

  • Cannabis sativa extract is approved as a pain medication in many countries, but in the UK, should not be initiated outside specialist pain centres.

    Academic text (2012)
  • The plant Cannabis sativa is commonly used to produce textiles, ropes, and paper due to its strong fibers.

  • Research shows that cannabinoids from Cannabis sativa can help alleviate chronic pain in patients.

Synonyms

hemp
vsCannabis sativa
  • NSFW
15 4.4

A tall, coarse plant grown for its strong fiber and seeds and sometimes used to make drugs

is cultivated both for fibers and for psychoactive and medical properties
Cannabis
vsCannabis sativa
  • NSFW
9 5.3

A plant that includes hemp used for fiber and marijuana used as a drug

is a specific species known for both fiber and psychoactive uses
marihuana
vsCannabis sativa
  • NSFW
1 6.2

A plant whose dried leaves and flowers are used as a drug or medicine

is the whole plant also used for fibers and for medicinal and psychoactive uses
Indian hemp
vsCannabis sativa
  • NSFW
8.2

A plant often Cannabis sativa grown for fiber to make rope or for drugs like hashish

is cultivated for both fibers and for psychoactive and medicinal uses

Surface Forms

Morphology

Cannabis + sativa

The name is a straightforward binomial combining the genus 'Cannabis' and the species epithet 'sativa', so a learner who knows both constituents can infer it refers to a cultivated species of the Cannabis plant. This follows standard scientific naming conventions (cross-linguistically recognizable) and is compositionally transparent rather than idiomatic.

Etymology

Cannabis sativa comes from old words: cannabis meaning 'hemp' and sativa meaning 'grown'. So the name points to a hemp plant people grow for fiber, for medicine, and for its effects on the mind.