Allspice = Jamaica pepper = myrtle pepper = pimento = clove pepper = new spice

Allspice comes from a single tree, but it tastes like a mixture of cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg.  You can buy it already ground, but for better flavor and a longer shelf life, buy the berries and grind them yourself.

Anise seed = aniseed = anis

Cooks use anise seed to impart a licorice flavor to baked goods, liqueurs, and candies. 
 

Cardamom =  green cardamom = phalazee (Burmese) = karudamon (Japanese) = luk kravan (Thai)

Cardamom figures prominently into the cuisines of India, the Middle East, North Africa, and Scandinavia. It is largely grown for its pods although Thai cooks sometimes use the leaves for flavoring. The pods are either added whole to spicy dishes, or opened so that the tiny dark seeds can be extracted. The most familiar are pale green, and there are also white pods, which are simply bleached green ones. Black cardamoms, which come from Vietnam and India, are large and coarse, and taste quite different. Cardamom pods are harvested by hand, and this makes them more costly than most other spices.

Cardamoms are sweet, pungent and highly aromatic. They have a pleasantly warm flavor, with hints of lemon and eucalyptus. When chewed after a meal, the pods are said to aid digestion as well as sweeten the breath.

Indian cooks use cardamom to flavor curries, pilaus and desserts, so it is not surprising that the spice is popular wherever there are Indian communities.

Coriander seeds

Coriander seeds are a common ingredient in the cuisines of India, the Middle East, Latin America, North Africa, and Southeast Asia.  The popular herb cilantro comes from the same plant, but it's not a good substitute for the seeds.  You can buy the seeds already ground, but for better flavor and shelf life, buy coriander seeds and grind them yourself.  To enhance the flavor, toast the seeds in a pan for a few minutes first.

Cumin = kuming (Chinese) = kumin (Japanese) = Yeeraa (Thai) = jintan (Malay)

Cumin has been cultivated since earliest times. It is believed to have originated in the Eastern Mediterranean, but is now widely cultivated, especially in China, India, Indonesia and Japan. The plant is a member of the parsley family, but only the seeds (whole or ground) are used in cooking.

Cumin has a sweet spicy aroma and the flavor is pungent and slightly bitter.

Cumin is often partnered with whole or ground coriander seeds. Indian cooks are particularly partial to cumin, and it was they who introduced the spice to Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia.

Dill seed = dillseed

Dill seed tastes like dill leaves, but it's much stronger.  It's a common ingredient in pickles, dips, and potato salad. 
 

Fennel seed = fennel = sweet cumin =wooi heung (Mandarin) = hui xiang (Cantonese) = yira (Thai)

Although native to the Mediterranean, this member of the parsley family is widely grown in India and Japan. The ridged seeds are sage green in color. Sweet, warm and aromatic, fennel seeds have a distinct anise flavor. Fennel seeds are a constituent in many spice mixtures, especially those that are intended to be used with fish or shellfish. Ground fennel is one of the constituents of Chinese five spice powder.

Nutmeg

The flavor of nutmeg is obtained by grating the nut on a fine grater. The fresh oils that are released provide strength and character to many well-know spice mixtures.

Mace is the lacy wrapping that covers nutmeg when it's plucked from the tree.  Its flavor is similar to nutmeg, but slightly more bitter and more subtle and delicate than nutmeg.  It's usually sold already ground, but you can sometimes find blades of mace that you can grind yourself.

Poppy seeds

These tiny, nutty seeds are typically used in baked goods, but some cuisines also use them in savory dishes.  Europeans prefer black poppy seeds, while Indians prefer white, but the two kinds can be substituted for one another.  Since poppy seeds are high in fat, they tend to go rancid quickly, so buy small amounts and store them in the refrigerator.  Consuming poppy seeds can result in a false positive on a drug test.

Ground turmeric = powdered turmeric = Indian saffron = eastern saffron.

Turmeric has a pleasant enough flavor, but it's prized more for the brilliant yellow color it imparts to whatever it's cooked with.  It's a standard ingredient in curry powders, pickles, and prepared mustards.  Be careful--turmeric can stain your clothes.