Definitions

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun botany Any of the genus Theobroma of small trees.

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From the genus name. Compare French théobrome.

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Examples

  • And not surprising, since the tree that chocolate comes from -- the cacao tree (pronounced ka-kaw) -- was given the name theobroma, which literally means "food of the gods."

    ParentDish Karla Heintz 2010

  • And not surprising, since the tree that chocolate comes from -- the cacao tree (pronounced ka-kaw) -- was given the name theobroma, which literally means "food of the gods."

    ParentDish 2010

  • The Cacao Bean The cacao tree, named Theobroma cacao by Linnaeus—theobroma is Greek for “food of the gods”—is a broad-leaved evergreen that grows between 20° north and south of the equator, and reaches about 20 feet/7 m in height.

    On Food and Cooking, The Science and Lore of the Kitchen Harold McGee 2004

  • The Cacao Bean The cacao tree, named Theobroma cacao by Linnaeus—theobroma is Greek for “food of the gods”—is a broad-leaved evergreen that grows between 20° north and south of the equator, and reaches about 20 feet/7 m in height.

    On Food and Cooking, The Science and Lore of the Kitchen Harold McGee 2004

  • The Chocolate Line Classic Easter eggs For me this is the most exiting: theobroma grandiflorum .

    Turning Chocolate on Its Head Paul Ames 2011

  • Their other choco-products - moisturizer, shampoo, conditioner, exfoliant and cleanser - include theobroma cacao L cocoa liquor or cocoa butter.

    The Chocolate Serum That Isn't TK 2009

  • The beginning of chocolate is the cacao tree, known by ethnobotanists as "theobroma cacao."

    How chocolate is used for healing in the past and present 2009

  • Their other choco-products - moisturizer, shampoo, conditioner, exfoliant and cleanser - include theobroma cacao L cocoa liquor or cocoa butter.

    Archive 2009-12-01 TK 2009

  • Ethnobotanists may argue over whether the very first cacao trees appeared in Mexico, Central or South America, but they do agree that the processing and culinary use of theobroma cacao ( "the gods 'food") was first developed in what is now Mexico.

    Mexican Chocolate: A Culinary Evolution 2006

  • Ethnobotanists may argue over whether the very first cacao trees appeared in Mexico, Central or South America, but they do agree that the processing and culinary use of theobroma cacao ( "the gods 'food") was first developed in what is now Mexico.

    Mexican Chocolate: A Culinary Evolution 2006

Comments

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  • "food of gods" literally: name of cacao tree genus

    March 18, 2007