areca

American  

[uh-ree-kuh, ar-i-] / əˈri kə, ˈær ɪ- /

noun

1. any tropical Asian palm of the genus Areca, as the betel palm.

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areca British  

/ ˈærɪkə, əˈriːkə /

noun

1. any of various tall palms of the genus Areca, which are native to SE Asia and have white flowers and orange or red egg-shaped nuts

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Etymology

Origin of areca

First recorded in 1500–10; from New Latin (earlier English spellings reflect Portuguese or French ); all ultimately from Malayalam aṭaykka

Example Sentences

But betel chew—a mixture of areca nuts, betel leaves and slaked lime—is entirely different from datura.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 10, 2025

The packaging company manufactures eco-friendly products, such as corrugated packaging, from fallen areca palm leaves and is valued at £48m.

From BBC • Jan. 23, 2022

I dropped the needle on Mort Garson’s album Mother Earth’s Plantasia, and set about watering my areca palms and orchids and my string-of-pearls and lipstick plants.

From The Guardian • May 20, 2019

“I used to have an areca nut field in Myanmar,” he tells us.

From Slate • Nov. 20, 2017

This set them on the wide path that led into the spacious circular compound of cobbled ground under the spreading areca nut tree, ringed with the houses of the village elders.

From "The Boy Who Met a Whale" by Nizrana Farook