kapok

[ key-pok ]

noun

1. the silky down that invests the seeds of a silk-cotton tree kapoktree, Ceiba pentandra, of the East Indies, Africa, and tropical America: used for stuffing pillows, life jackets, etc., and for acoustical insulation.

kapok

/ ˈkeɪpɒk /

noun

1. a silky fibre obtained from the hairs covering the seeds of a tropical bombacaceous tree, Ceiba pentandra ( kapok tree or silk-cotton tree ): used for stuffing pillows, etc, and for sound insulation Also calledsilk cotton

Word History and Origins

Origin of kapok¹

1740–50; < Javanese (or Malay of Java and Sumatra) kapuk the name of the tree

Word History and Origins

Origin of kapok¹

C18: from Malay

Example Sentences

The silk cotton or kapok (bombax) is also to be met with in every village.

From Project Gutenberg

The Kapok plant furnishes most of the commercial silk cotton on the market.

From Project Gutenberg

Even prettier and more wonderfully made is the nest of the kapok bird, a little creature resembling a tom-tit.

From Project Gutenberg

The material used in the construction of this small domicile is a kind of wild cotton, well named by the Boers kapok (snow).

From Project Gutenberg

The cotton or kapok was used directly, but the burlap was shredded into a fine mass of fluffy fibers.

From Project Gutenberg