mahoe

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. n. A tropical tree (Hibiscus elatus) that produces a blue-green wood used in cabinetry.
2. n. A tropical evergreen shrub (Hibiscus tiliaceus) that yields fibers used for cordage. Also called sea hibiscus.
3. n. A tree (Melicytus ramiflorus) native to New Zealand and having whitish bark, blue to dark purple berries, and fragrant, small, yellow, bell-like flowers.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. A malvaceous tree or shrub, Hibiscus (Paritium) tiliaceus, common on tropical coasts. The inner bark has been much used for cordage.
2. n. Sterculia Caribœa, a tall West Indian tree.
3. n. Melicytus ramiflorus, a small New Zealand tree of the violet family, with small flowers in bundles on the branches.

Wiktionary

1. n. Any of a number of different trees, usually found around the tropics.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. n. (Bot.) A name given to several malvaceous trees (species of Hibiscus, Ochroma, etc.), and to their strong fibrous inner bark, which is used for strings and cordage.

WordNet 3.0

1. n. shrubby tree widely distributed along tropical shores; yields a light tough wood used for canoe outriggers and a fiber used for cordage and caulk; often cultivated for ornament
2. n. erect forest tree of Cuba and Jamaica having variably hairy leaves and orange-yellow or orange-red flowers; yields a moderately dense timber for cabinetwork and gunstocks