Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Balm \Balm\, n. [OE. baume, OF. bausme, basme, F. baume, L.
   balsamum balsam, from Gr. ?; perhaps of Semitic origin; cf.
   Heb. b[=a]s[=a]m. Cf. {Balsam}.]
   1. (Bot.) An aromatic plant of the genus {Melissa}.

   2. The resinous and aromatic exudation of certain trees or
      shrubs. --Dryden.

   3. Any fragrant ointment. --Shak.

   4. Anything that heals or that mitigates pain. ``Balm for
      each ill.'' --Mrs. Hemans.

   {Balm cricket} (Zo["o]l.), the European cicada. --Tennyson.

   {Balm of Gilead} (Bot.), a small evergreen African and
      Asiatic tree of the terebinthine family ({Balsamodendron
      Gileadense}). Its leaves yield, when bruised, a strong
      aromatic scent; and from this tree is obtained the balm of
      Gilead of the shops, or balsam of Mecca. This has a
      yellowish or greenish color, a warm, bitterish, aromatic
      taste, and a fragrant smell. It is valued as an unguent
      and cosmetic by the Turks. The fragrant herb
      {Dracocephalum Canariense} is familiarly called balm of
      Gilead, and so are the American trees, {Populus
      balsamifera}, variety candicans (balsam poplar), and
      {Abies balsamea} (balsam fir).