Cassavas

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The starchy tuber of a tropical plant, often processed into flour or used as a staple food
2. A shrub native to South America known for its edible root, which is high in carbohydrates
3. A versatile ingredient used in various cuisines, commonly made into chips or porridge

Etymology: Cassavas is simply the plural of cassava, the starchy root that feeds much of the tropical world. The English word is borrowed from Spanish "cazabe", which in turn came from a Taíno word, "kasabi", meaning cassava flour. Spanish colonists encountered the crop in the Caribbean, and the Taíno name travelled with the plant into European languages. The word also has a near twin. "Cazabe" survives in Spanish as the name for a flatbread made from cassava, so the two forms are doublets: one from the same source that reached the language by a different route and took on a different sense. Because the root's name came from the people who first cultivated it in the Caribbean, the word is one of the few everyday English food terms with a direct Taíno ancestor. The Garifuna language of Central America preserves a related form, "sibiba", tracing the word back through the Arawakan family to a much older shared ancestor.

Synonyms: maniocs, yucas, manioc roots