babassun.
/ˌbabəˈsuː/, U.S. /ˌbɑbəˈsu/ More fully babassu palm. A palm tree, Orbignya barbosiana (sometimes called Attalea speciosa), of north-eastern Brazil, with hard-shelled seeds from which a valuable oil is produced, and large feathery leaves.
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the world > plants > particular plants > trees and shrubs > non-British trees or shrubs > palm trees > [noun] > oil palms
macaw1657
groo-groo1796
macaw fat1801
oil palm1850
macca-fat palm1873
babassu1876
oil-berry tree1878
macca1892
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > plant, nut, or bean yielding oil > [noun] > trees or shrubs yielding oil > tropical > oil-palms
macaw1657
macaw fat1801
oil palm1850
macca-fat palm1873
babassu1876
oil-berry tree1878
1876 Catal. Brazilian Sect. Philadelphia Internat. Exhib. vi. 105 Oil of the Coco Babassu.
1923 W. Howarth Mod. Brazil vi. 88 Recent years have..added considerably to the number of oil-producing seeds and kernels, among the latter being the babassú.
1933 P. Fleming Brazilian Adventure iii. xii. 399 Only the babassú palms stood up proudly.
1961 Econ. Bot. 15 228/1 Among the oil yielding palms indigenous to the Amazon may be mentioned the babassù (Orbignya speciosa..), magnificent palms with elegant feathery leaves.
1973 Foreign Policy Autumn 104 The efficient production of babassu oil, highly prized for cooking, could be equally lucrative.
2000 J. Rocha Brazil 67 Forests of what look like luxuriant green feather-dusters cover huge swathes of northern Brazil. This is the extraordinary babassu palm.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2011; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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