sapotaceous

[ sap-uh-tey-shuhs ]

adjective

1. belonging to the Sapotaceae, the sapodilla family of plants.

sapotaceous

/ ˌsæpəˈteɪʃəs /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or belonging to the Sapotaceae, a family of leathery-leaved tropical plants: includes the gutta-percha and balata trees, sapodilla, and shea

Word History and Origins

Origin of sapotaceous¹

1835–45; < New Latin Sapotace ( ae ) name of the family ( sapota, -aceae ) + -ous

Word History and Origins

Origin of sapotaceous¹

C19: from New Latin sapota sapota

Example Sentences

Lucuma mammosum.—This sapotaceous plant is cultivated for its fruit, which is called marmalade, on account of its containing a thick agreeably flavored pulp, bearing some resemblance in appearance and taste to quince marmalade.

From Project Gutenberg

This sapotaceous plant attains a great size in Guiana and affords a dense, close-grained, valuable timber.

From Project Gutenberg

Now this William Curteen and his father Sir William, of Flemish Descent, were the most extensive British merchants of the time, and had not only ships trading to, but also possessed forts and factories on, some of the islands of the Eastern Archipelago, the native habitat of the sapotaceous tree that yields the gutta percha.

From Project Gutenberg