ferula communis

Narthex \Nar"thex\, n. [L., giant fennel, Gr. na`rqhx.]
   1. (Bot.) A tall umbelliferous plant ({Ferula communis}). See
      {Giant fennel}, under {Fennel}.
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   2. (Arch.) The portico in front of ancient churches;
      sometimes, the atrium or outer court surrounded by
      ambulatories; -- used, generally, for any vestibule,
      lobby, or outer porch, leading to the nave of a church.
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Ferula \Fer"u*la\, n. [L. ferula giant fennel (its stalks were
   used in punishing schoolboys), rod, whip, fr. ferire to
   strike; akin to OHG. berjan, Icel. berja. Cf. {Ferule}.]
   1. A ferule. [Obs.] --Beau. & Fl.
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   2. The imperial scepter in the Byzantine or Eastern Empire.
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   3. [capitalized] A genus of plants of the parsley family
      {Apiaceae} (of the order {Umbelliferae}), including some
      yielding {asafetida}. Members include {Ferula asafoetida}
      ({Ferula foetida}), the giant fennel ({Ferula communis)},
      and {Ferula orientalis}.
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Fennel \Fen"nel\ (f[e^]n"n[e^]l), n. [AS. fenol, finol, from L.
   feniculum, faeniculum, dim. of fenum, faenum, hay: cf. F.
   fenouil. Cf. {Fenugreek}. {Finochio}.] (Bot.)
   A perennial plant of the genus {F[ae]niculum} ({F[ae]niculum
   vulgare}), having very finely divided leaves. It is
   cultivated in gardens for the agreeable aromatic flavor of
   its seeds.
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         Smell of sweetest fennel.                --Milton.
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         A sprig of fennel was in fact the theological smelling
         bottle of the tender sex.                --S. G.
                                                  Goodrich.
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   {Azorean fennel}, or {Sweet fennel}, ({F[ae]niculum dulce}).
      It is a smaller and stouter plant than the common fennel,
      and is used as a pot herb.

   {Dog's fennel} ({Anthemis Cotula}), a foul-smelling European
      weed; -- called also {mayweed}.

   {Fennel flower} (Bot.), an herb ({Nigella}) of the Buttercup
      family, having leaves finely divided, like those of the
      fennel. {Nigella Damascena} is common in gardens. {Nigella
      sativa} furnishes the fennel seed, used as a condiment,
      etc., in India. These seeds are the "fitches" mentioned in
      Isaiah (xxviii. 25).

   {Fennel water} (Med.), the distilled water of fennel seed. It
      is stimulant and carminative.

   {Giant fennel} ({Ferula communis}), has stems full of pith,
      which, it is said, were used to carry fire, first, by
      Prometheus.

   {Hog's fennel}, a European plant ({Peucedanum officinale})
      looking something like fennel.
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