jacal

[ huh-kahl, hah- ]

noun,plural ja·ca·les [huh-kah-leys, -leyz, hah-], /həˈkɑ leɪs, -leɪz, hɑ-/, ja·cals.
  1. (in the southwestern U.S. and Mexico) a hut with a thatched roof and walls consisting of thin stakes driven into the ground close together and plastered with mud.

Origin of jacal

1
1830–40, Americanism;<Mexican Spanish <Nahuatl xahcalli

Words Nearby jacal

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use jacal in a sentence

  • The other is the jacal, which is nearly 9600 feet above the sea-level, and crowned with forests of pine and cedar.

    The Desert World | Arthur Mangin
  • Ten minutes later all slept, or seemed to sleep, in the jacal: the storm lasted the night through, howling furiously.

    The Trapper's Daughter | Gustave Aimard
  • Only a few minutes after the hacendero's son had left, the door of the jacal was roughly opened—four men entered.

    The Trapper's Daughter | Gustave Aimard
  • Valentine said, when about a dozen yards from the jacal, "Everything is very silent here."

    The Trapper's Daughter | Gustave Aimard
  • The preparations for quitting the jacal were not long, and an hour later, the five persons started.

    The Trapper's Daughter | Gustave Aimard