What does catechu mean?

Definitions for catechu
ˈkæt ɪˌtʃu, -ˌkyucat·e·chu

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word catechu.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. black catechu, catechunoun

    extract of the heartwood of Acacia catechu used for dyeing and tanning and preserving fishnets and sails; formerly used medicinally

  2. catechu, Jerusalem thorn, Acacia catechunoun

    East Indian spiny tree having twice-pinnate leaves and yellow flowers followed by flat pods; source of black catechu

Wiktionary

  1. catechunoun

    A gummy extract of any of several species of Acacia, produced by boiling the wood of the tree in water and evaporating the resulting liquid.

Wikipedia

  1. Catechu

    Catechu ( or ) is an extract of acacia trees used variously as a food additive, astringent, tannin, and dye. It is extracted from several species of Acacia, but especially Senegalia catechu (Acacia catechu), by boiling the wood in water and evaporating the resulting brew. It is also known as cutch, black cutch, cachou, cashoo, terra Japonica, or Japan earth, and also katha in Hindi, kaath in Marathi, khaira in Odia, khoyer in Assamese and Bengali, and kachu in Malay (hence the Latinized Acacia catechu chosen as the Linnaean taxonomy name of the type-species Acacia plant which provides the extract).

ChatGPT

  1. catechu

    Catechu is a plant extract derived from several varieties of trees and shrubs in the Acacia or Mimosa family. It is typically used in various forms such as a brownish dried juice or concentrated extract that has astringent, antimicrobial and antioxidant properties. It is commonly used in traditional medicine, tanning and dyeing industry, and as a flavoring substance.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Catechunoun

    a dry, brown, astringent extract, obtained by decoction and evaporation from the Acacia catechu, and several other plants growing in India. It contains a large portion of tannin or tannic acid, and is used in medicine and in the arts. It is also known by the names terra japonica, cutch, gambier, etc

  2. Etymology: [See Cashoo.]

Wikidata

  1. Catechu

    Catechu is an extract of Acacia used variously as a food additive, astringent, tannin, and dye. It is extracted from several species of Acacia, but especially Acacia catechu, by boiling the wood in water and evaporating the resulting brew. It is also known as cutch, black cutch, cachou, cashoo, khoyer, terra Japonica, or Japan earth, and also katha in Hindi, kaath in Marathi, khoyer in Assamese and Bengali, and kachu in Malay. As an astringent it has been used since ancient times in Ayurvedic medicine as well as in breath-freshening spice mixtures—for example in France and Italy it is used in some licorice pastilles. It is also an important ingredient in South Asian cooking paan mixtures, such as ready-made paan masala and gutka. The catechu mixture is high in natural vegetable tannins, and may be used for the tanning of animal hides. Early research by Sir Humphry Davy in the early 19th century first demonstrated the use of catechu in tanning over more expensive and traditional oak extracts.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Catechu

    kat′e-shoo, n. a substance used in tanning and dyeing, and medicinally as an astringent, obtained from the heart-wood of several East Indian trees, as the betel-nut, &c. [Tamil.]

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Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of catechu in Chaldean Numerology is: 9

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of catechu in Pythagorean Numerology is: 7


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"catechu." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2025. Web. 17 Feb. 2025. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/catechu>.

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