n 1 a  :  a thickened pungent aromatic rhizome that is used as a spice and sometimes in medicine  b  :  the spice usu. prepared by drying and grinding ginger  2  :  any of a genus (Zingiber of the family Zingiberaceae, the ginger family) of herbs with pungent aromatic rhizomes : esp  :  a widely cultivated tropical herb (Z. officinale) that supplies most of the ginger of commerce .
 
 
 
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