Definition of "cassava" [cas•sa•va]

• A shrubby tropical American plant (Manihot esculenta) widely grown for its large, tuberous, starchy roots. (noun)
• The root of this plant, eaten as a staple food in the tropics only after leaching and drying to remove cyanide. Cassava starch is also the source of tapioca. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Today, cassava is a staple food consumed by more than 500 million around the world."
• "Originally consumed in ancient South American civilizations, cassava is a root plant that grows like potato."
• "In fact, tapioca, a substance made from the starch grains in cassava, came mainly from the Far East, and with supply lines disrupted, that presented problems for packaged food."