amadou

[ am-uh-doo ]
/ ˈæm əˌdu /

noun

a spongy substance prepared from fungi, Polyporus (Fomes) fomentarius and allied species, growing on trees, used as tinder and in surgery.

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Origin of amadou

1805–15; <French, Middle French, apparently noun derivative of amadouer to coax, influence by flattery. verbal derivative of Provençal, Old Provençal amadou(r) lover <Latin amātōr-, stem of amātor (see amateur); name is usually explained by the conventional association between love and highly combustible substances

Words nearby amadou

Amadis, Amadis of Gaul, Amado, amadoda, Amador Guerrero, amadou, Amagasaki, amah, amain, amakihi, Amakrokokroko
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

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British Dictionary definitions for amadou

amadou
/ (ˈæməˌduː) /

noun

a spongy substance made from certain fungi, such as Polyporus (or Fomes) fomentarius and related species, used as tinder to light fires, in medicine to stop bleeding, and, esp formerly, by anglers to dry off dry flies between casts

Word Origin for amadou

C18: from French, from Provençal: lover, from Latin amātor, from amāre to love; so called because it readily ignites
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012