mesquite

mes·quite  (m-skt, m-)

n.

Any of several small spiny trees or shrubs of the genus Prosopis in the pea family, native to hot, dry regions of the New World and important as plants for bees and forage for cattle, especially:

a. P. glandulosa, native to the southwest United States and northern Mexico. Also called honey mesquite, western honey mesquite.

b. P. juliflora, native to the Gulf Coast and Caribbean islands from Mexico to Venezuela. Also called algarroba.

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[Spanish mezquite, from Nahuatl mizquitl.]

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

mesquite - any of several small spiny trees or shrubs of the genus Prosopis having small flowers in axillary cylindrical spikes followed by large pods rich in sugar mesquit genus Prosopis, Prosopis - genus of tropical or subtropical branching shrubs or trees: mesquite honey mesquite, Prosopis glandulosa, Western honey mesquite - thorny deep-rooted drought-resistant shrub native to southwestern United States and Mexico bearing pods rich in sugar and important as livestock feed; tends to form extensive thickets Prosopis juliflora, Prosopis juliiflora, algarroba - mesquite of Gulf Coast and Caribbean Islands from Mexico to Venezuela Prosopis pubescens, screwbean, screwbean mesquite, tornillo, screw bean - shrub or small tree of southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico having spirally twisted pods bush, shrub - a low woody perennial plant usually having several major stems