TEA

Tea (te) noun

1.a. An eastern Asian evergreen shrub or small tree (Camellia sinensis) having fragrant, nodding, cup-shaped white flowers and glossy leaves.
b. The young, dried leaves of this plant, prepared by various processes and used to make a hot beverage.

2.An aromatic, slightly bitter beverage made by steeping tea leaves in boiling water

3.Any of various beverages, made as by steeping the leaves of certain plants or by extracting an infusion especially from beef.

4.Any of various plants having leaves used to make a tealike beverage.

5.Chiefly British.
a. An afternoon refreshment consisting usually of sandwiches and cakes served with tea.
b. High tea.

6.An afternoon reception or social gathering at which tea is served.

[Probably Dutch thee, from Malay teh, from Chinese (Amoy) te.]

Word History

The tea plant (Camellia sinensis) itself is a native of Southeast Asia. Written records from the 10th century BC indicate that tea brewed from the dried leaves of this plant has been drunk in China since at least that time. Tea was first brought to Europe by the Dutch in the early 17th century AD. After its introduction there in 1657, England became the only European country of tea drinkers rather than coffee drinkers. China, India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Japan are the main producers of tea.

Tea Plant

Tea, common name for a family of mostly woody flowering plants, and for one of its important genera (Camellia). The family, which contains about 600 species placed in 28 genera, is distributed through tropical and subtropical areas, but most species occur in eastern Asia and South America. Members of the order to which the tea family belongs are mostly evergreen trees with broad, simple, resin-containing leaves, although a few climbers and herbs occur.

The age of the leaves determines the taste and name of a particular variety of tea. The leaves either are dried immediately and completely to produce green teas, or are partially dried and then allowed to ferment to produce various kinds of black teas. Tea is an aromatic stimulant, containing various essential oils and caffeine.

Scientific classification: Teas make up the family Theaceae of the order Theales.

Coffee

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