1. Any of various plants of the genus Croton, which includes the sources of cascarilla bark and croton oil.
2. An Old World tropical evergreen shrub (Codiaeum variegatum) widely cultivated as a houseplant for its glossy multicolored foliage.

[New Latin Croton, genus name, from Greek krotōn, castor oil plant.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.