muscadel, muscadine, muscat, mus catel

[O. Fr. muscadel, from O. Ital. moscadello, moscatello the wine muscadine; moscatini =pears, grapes, ., so-called, from O. Ital. moscato per fumed with musk, from muschio, musco musk, from Lat. muscus =musk (q. v.).) 1. A name given to several kinds of sweet and strong Italian and French wines. 2. The grapes from which these wines are made. "The beautiful town that gives us wine With the fragrant odor of Muscadine!" Long fellow: Golden Legend, iv. 3. A fragrant and delicious pear. 2792 fruit is capsular, generally with teeth and a lid. Mo es may be acrocarpous, i . e., have terminal fruit, or pleurocarpous, i , e., have lateral fruit, or cladocarpous, i . e., have the fruit on small branchlets. Mo es are widely diffused over the world; they rise high on mountain sides. About forty-six genera, and 1,100 species are known. II. Palæobot .: (MUSCITE.)