Kentucky coffee tree

noun

1. a tall North American tree, Gymnocladus dioica, of the legume family, the seeds of which Kentucky coffee beans were formerly used as a substitute for coffee beans.

Kentucky coffee tree

noun

1. a North American leguminous tree, Gymnocladus dioica, whose seeds, in brown curved pulpy pods, were formerly used as a coffee substitute

Word History and Origins

Origin of Kentucky coffee tree¹

First recorded in 1775–85

Example Sentences

Washington brought back seeds of the Kentucky coffee tree after one of his surveying trips in the Ohio River valley and descendants of trees grown by Washington are at River Farm.

From Washington Post

And once one reaches the Russian Orthodox and Jewish Brooklyn enclave, memories of mock Tudor mansions, Kentucky coffee trees and Japanese snowbells soon fade.

From The Guardian

But now, they have morphed into picnic tables and even a seesaw for children, as one heads west, along a grove of Kentucky coffee trees toward the river.

From New York Times

The Kentucky coffee tree is the one clumsy, coarse member of a family that abounds in graceful, dainty species.

From Project Gutenberg

This cache was in a large chamber in a tunnel system of the prairie vole, on an east-facing hillside of walnut trees, catalpas, and Kentucky coffee trees.

From Project Gutenberg