nopal

[ noh-puhl, noh-pahl, -pal ]

noun

1. any of several cacti of the genus Nopalea, resembling the prickly pear.
2. the fruit of such a cactus, or of a similar cactus, as the prickly pear.

nopal

/ ˈnəʊpəl /

noun

1. any of various cactuses of the genus Nopalea, esp the red-flowered N. cochinellifera, which is a host plant of the cochineal insect
2. a cactus, Opuntia lindheimeri, having yellow flowers and purple fruits See also prickly pear

Word History and Origins

Origin of nopal¹

1720–30; < Mexican Spanish < Nahuatl nohpalli

Word History and Origins

Origin of nopal¹

C18: from Spanish, from Nahuatl nopálli cactus

Example Sentences

It’s on the Mexican flag, a golden eagle grasping a snake perched atop a nopal on an island — a reference to the Aztec legend of searching for a new home until encountering that exact scene.

From Los Angeles Times

“I laugh because I’m like, con el nopal en la frente,” she said, lightly slapping her forehead after uttering a colloquialism often used to emphasize someone’s evident Mexican roots via their appearance.

From Los Angeles Times

That vibrant red, a hue prized in Zapotec culture for 2,000 years, is derived from the cochineal, a tiny insect that thrives on nopal cactus.

From Los Angeles Times

Traces of color linger on masonry that was once slathered in bright red paint made by grinding cochinillas, wood lice that live on nopal cactuses.

From New York Times

It comes from the crushed bodies of tiny female insects that contain carminic acid and feed on the pads of nopal cactus plants.

From Seattle Times