tur·pen·tine / ˈtərpənˌtīn/ • n. 1. (also oil of turpentine) a volatile pungent oil distilled from gum turpentine or pine wood, used in mixing paints and varnishes and in liniment. ∎  (also crude turpentine or gum turpentine) an oleoresin secreted by certain trees, esp. pines, and distilled to make rosin and oil of turpentine. 2. (also turpentine tree) any of a number of trees that yield turpentine or a similar resin, in particular the terebinth, or a coniferous tree (Larix, Pinus, and other genera) of the pine family.

turpentine orig. resin of the terebinth tree, (now) any oleo-resin from a conifer. XIV. — OF. ter(e)bentine — L. ter(e)benthina, f. terebinthus TEREBINTH; see -INE1.

turpentine See PISTACIA and SYNCARPIA.