Recent Examples on the WebConsumed by more than 600 million people, mainly in southern Asia, areca nut—more popularly, betel nut—is a stimulant. Ananya Bhattacharya, Quartz, 18 Jan. 2022 This saddens but does not surprise Larry Raigetal, a master navigator who is chewing betel nut beneath a canopy of stars. Julian Aguon, The Atlantic, 1 Nov. 2021 Pineapple shrimp balls, a betel nut pineapple salad and classics like fried rice with pineapple are just some of the dishes being pushed out by restaurants and hotels on the island. Huizhong Wu, chicagotribune.com, 10 Mar. 2021 Apart from betel vineyards, this lush fertile land has provided us with cashew, coconut, drumstick, mango, jackfruit, betel nut, pineapple, guava, many other varieties of fruits, roots, and vegetables. Mayank Aggarwal, Quartz India, 4 Mar. 2020 As the humid jumble of roaring motorcycles and bubble-tea shops vanishes behind me, knotted electrical wires make way for betel nut plantations and clotheslines in small-town backyards that straddle railroad tracks first built for loggers. Chris Schalkx, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Feb. 2020 Kuso cracks open a betel nut with his molars, and starts chewing. Per Liljas, Washington Post, 9 May 2018 Already, a nationalist dictator, Field Marshal Phibun Songkhram, had ordered Thais to wear Western clothes and banned the traditional chewing of betel nut, which stains mouths and teeth crimson. Hannah Beech, New York Times, 25 Oct. 2017 See More
Word History
Etymology
from its being chewed with betel leaves
First Known Use
1673, in the meaning defined above
Medical Definition
betel nut
noun
: the astringent seed of the betel palm that is a source of arecoline