cocoa
1 Americannoun
adjective
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of or relating to cocoa.
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of the color of cocoa.
noun
noun
noun
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a powder made from cocoa beans after they have been roasted, ground, and freed from most of their fatty oil
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a hot or cold drink made from cocoa and milk or water
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a light to moderate brown colour
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( as adjective )
cocoa paint
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Etymology
Origin of cocoa1
First recorded in 1700–10; earlier cocao, cacoa, variant of cacao
Origin of cocoa2
Explanation
The dark, chocolate-brown powder you use to make brownies or devil's food cake is called cocoa. Cocoa consists of finely ground roasted cacao beans. You can use cocoa to make many chocolate treats, including pudding, cake, cookies, and hot chocolate — which is also called cocoa. Although cocoa powder smells delicious, it has to be mixed with sugar or some other sweetener for it to taste good. When the word cocoa was first used in the early 18th century, it was based on a mistake, mixing up the letters of cacao, the seed that's used to make cocoa.
Vocabulary lists containing cocoa
Non-Color Words to Use When Describing Color
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Brown
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Experts say climate change has led to extreme rainfall and droughts which have decreased cocoa farmers' crops.
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
The group, which says it runs the world's biggest chocolate factory in Belgium and provides cocoa products to nearly all major makers, warned however that any improvement would be "gradual".
From Barron's ● Jul. 9, 2026
This law aims to ensure that rubber, wood and cocoa products the bloc imports aren’t contributing to global deforestation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
They reminisce about the brown bread: those sweet, dark little wheat loaves scented with honey, molasses, cocoa powder and espresso.
From Salon ● Jun. 22, 2026
Ob drank his cocoa and looked out the front window while I got the table spread.
From "Missing May" by Cynthia Rylant
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Cocoa topped $12,000 a metric ton in late 2024, before falling below $3,000 earlier this year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 8, 2026
The country's equivalent of Cocobod - the Coffee and Cocoa Council - also guaranteed a price last year that is now way above the international price.
From BBC ● Mar. 8, 2026
In response to the hardship faced by producers, the state's Coffee Cocoa Council announced in January it would buy at the record price tens of thousands of tonnes of cocoa piling up across the country.
From Barron's ● Mar. 4, 2026
Cocoa behaved differently, with elevated levels in stems, leaves, and fruits.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 17, 2026
I put Cocoa in my backpack, slip it on, and we follow Ms. Lena.
From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.