also: もっしょくし
gallnut; oak gall; nutgall
A growth on oak trees caused by insect larvae, historically used for making ink and tannin. Technical term in botany and historical contexts.
Gallnuts were used as a material for ink in the past.
This specimen has several oak galls attached.
Standard kanji spelling for gallnut.
Alternate reading; less common than ぼっしょくし.
The kanji 没食子 literally means 'lost-food child', but the exact derivation is uncertain. It is a traditional term for oak galls, likely adopted from Chinese medical or technical texts.