1.
[syn: chicle, chicle gum]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Balata \Bal"a*ta\, n. [Sp., prob. fr. native name.]
1. A West Indian sapotaceous tree (Bumelia retusa).
[Webster 1913 Suppl.]
2. The bully tree (Minusops globosa); also, its milky juice
(); also, its milky juice (), which when dried
constitutes an elastic gum called chicle, or chicle
gum.
[Webster 1913 Suppl.]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Chicle \Chic"le\, n., Chicle gum \Chicle gum\ [Amer. Sp.
chicle.]
A gumlike substance obtained from the bully tree (Mimusops
globosa) and sometimes also from the naseberry or sapodilla
(Sapota zapotilla). It is more plastic than caoutchouc and
more elastic than gutta-percha, as an adulterant of which it
is used in England. It is used largely in the United States
in making chewing gum.
[Webster 1913 Suppl.]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
chicle
n 1: gum-like substance from the sapodilla [syn: chicle,
chicle gum]