noun

• 1The starchy tuberous root of a tropical tree, used as food in tropical countries but requiring careful preparation to remove traces of cyanide from the flesh.

  Also called manioc

  ‘Common vegetables are cabbage, beans, mushrooms, carrots, cassava, sweet potatoes, onions, and various types of greens.’

  More example sentences

  • ‘Pineapples, sweet potatoes, beans, cassava, rice, groundnuts and maize are among the main crops.’
  • ‘They were very hardworking farmers and we used to buy cheap beans, rice, cassava, sweet potatoes and maize from them.’
  • ‘They grow maize, sorghum, cassava, sweet potatoes and also rear domesticated animals like goats, pigs and chicken.’
  • ‘In Zambia and many African countries most of the foods eaten in the region like maize, cassava, millet, sweet potatoes were all brought by explorers and colonialists.’
  • ‘But to eradicate malnutrition, we grow maize, beans, soya beans, sweet potatoes, cassava, pumpkins and many others.’
  • ‘The land produces taro, yams, sweet potatoes, cassava, and breadfruit.’
  • ‘Rice, cassava, and sweet potatoes are the chief food crops; cattle-breeding is extensive.’
  • ‘Most villagers have a small plot of land on which they farm maize, groundnuts, cassava, millet, sweet potatoes, and other products.’
  • ‘Today we're producing rice, beans, cassava, pumpkins, passion fruit and other crops.’
  • ‘Creole food uses tubers, such as cassava and sweet potatoes.’
  • ‘The rich soils of Uganda are capable of producing a wide range of crops such as maize, cassava, groundnut, sorghum, pineapple, millet and other stable foods.’
  • ‘Forest crops, such as plantain, cassava, cocoyam, and tropical yams, predominate in the south.’
  • ‘Another staple of Liberian cuisine is cassava, a tropical plant with starchy roots from which tapioca is obtained.’
  • ‘Maize, cassava, pigeon peas, onions, bananas, potatoes, and tomatoes are important commercial crops.’
  • ‘The hunter domesticated some animals, and the collector grew crops such as bananas, cassava, and sweet potatoes.’
  • ‘These families now cultivate their own crops - beans, potato, cassava, banana and many others.’
  • ‘Women raised the children and they also tended the farm, raising domestic animals and growing foods such as cassava.’
  • ‘These have led to cuts in food subsidies, resulting in pressure to tear up maize and cassava in order to grow crops like tobacco which can be used to sell for foreign currency.’
  • ‘It is largely farming land where yam, cassava, and palm trees are grown; it is bounded by the Cross River to the east and extends past the Niger River to the west.’

  1. 1.1A starch or flour obtained from the cassava root.
     ‘The most popular rural staple is ugali, a stiff dough made of cassava flour, cornmeal, millet, or sorghum.’
     More example sentences

     • ‘Sometimes we worked all through the night and it was rare that I ate more than a bowl-full of cassava flour in a day.’
     • ‘The staple noonday meal is foo-foo, a dough-like paste made of cassava pounded into flour.’
     • ‘For breakfast, a village family eats a dough-like ball made from cassava flour with the previous day's sauce.’
     • ‘The bubbles in bubble tea are actually oversized tapioca pearls, made from cassava root starch and caramel.’
     • ‘Some 348,000 tonnes surplus from cassava flour is expected from a total production of 958,000 tonnes while total requirement for various uses is 609,000 tonnes.’
     • ‘They also enjoy cassava flour, boiled in water, and stirred to make a thick paste (ugali).’
     • ‘Gali foto in its simplest form is a breakfast dish made from cassava flour.’
     • ‘The most popular form among school children is deep-fried cassava coated with sugar.’
     • ‘Usually, after the boiled cassava is pounded and then mixed with palm sugar, it is ready to be consumed.’
     • ‘A favorite dish among Angolans is cabidela, chicken's blood eaten with rice and cassava dough.’
     • ‘Other starchy foods include cassava, taro root, maize and plantains.’
     • ‘Very starchy foods such as cassava contain virtually nothing but carbohydrates and water.’
     • ‘Rice, sorghum, millet, and cassava are common foods.’
     • ‘Placed on the mats are boiled sweet potatoes, cassava, bananas and other foods and dishes brought by those participating.’
     • ‘Cassava, rice, bread, peanuts, spinach, cassava leaves and other vegetables are also eaten.’
     • ‘Other sources of vitamin A to keep in mind are fish, butter or cream, cheese, spinach, cassava, sweet potatoes, papaya, and mangos.’

• 2The shrubby tree from which cassava is obtained, native to tropical America and cultivated throughout the tropics.

  Genus Manihot, family Euphorbiaceae: several species, in particular bitter cassava (M. esculenta) and sweet cassava (M. dulcis)

  ‘Cultivated cassava has a higher rate of photosynthesis than is usual for C 3 plants and photosynthesis is not light saturated.’

  More example sentences

  • ‘There are four layers in all, the final one consisting of the cassava leaves and hog's meat on top of hot stones.’
  • ‘The roots of the cassava plant contain linamarin, a cyanogen which produces the poisonous chemical cyanide when eaten.’
  • ‘A favorite everyday dish called ngunja is made with the dark green leaves of the cassava plant.’
  • ‘Tapioca is a starch-like substance that is extracted from the root of the cassava plant.’