[syn: bitter cassava, manioc, mandioc, mandioca, tapioca plant, gari, Manihot esculenta, Manihot utilissima]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Manioc \Ma"ni*oc\, n. [Pg. mandioca, fr. Braz.] (Bot.)
The tropical plants (Manihot utilissima, and Manihot
Aipi), from which cassava and tapioca are prepared; also,
cassava. [Written also mandioc, manihoc, manihot.]
[1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Cassava \Cas"sa*va\ (k[a^]s"s[.a]*v[.a]), n. [F. cassave, Sp.
cazabe, fr. kasabi, in the language of Haiti.]
1. (Bot.) A shrubby euphorbiaceous plant of the genus
Manihot, with fleshy rootstocks yielding an edible
starch; -- called also manioc.
[1913 Webster]
Note: There are two species, bitter and sweet, from which the
cassava of commerce is prepared in the West Indies,
tropical America, and Africa. The bitter (Manihot
utilissima) is the more important; this has a
poisonous sap, but by grating, pressing, and baking the
root the poisonous qualities are removed. The sweet
(Manihot Aipi) is used as a table vegetable.
[1913 Webster]
2. A nutritious starch obtained from the rootstocks of the
cassava plant, used as food and in making tapioca.
[1913 Webster]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
manioc
n 1: a starch made by leaching and drying the root of the
cassava plant; the source of tapioca; a staple food in the
tropics [syn: cassava, cassava starch, manioc,
manioca]
2: cassava root eaten as a staple food after drying and
leaching; source of tapioca [syn: cassava, manioc]
3: cassava with long tuberous edible roots and soft brittle
stems; used especially to make cassiri (an intoxicating
drink) and tapioca [syn: bitter cassava, manioc,
mandioc, mandioca, tapioca plant, gari, Manihot
esculenta, Manihot utilissima]