betel

Or be·tel pepper

[beet-l]

noun

1. an East Indian pepper plant, Piper betle, the leaves of which are chewed with other ingredients.

betel

/ ˈbiːtəl /

noun

1. an Asian piperaceous climbing plant, Piper betle , the leaves of which are chewed, with the betel nut, by the peoples of SE Asia

Word History and Origins

Origin of betel¹

1545–55; < Portuguese bétele, bétere < Malayalam viṟṟila or Tamil veṟṟilai

Word History and Origins

Origin of betel¹

C16: from Portuguese, from Malayalam vettila

Example Sentences

Mr. Wilser quotes Mr. Hahn, almost in passing, as saying that the titular swami “regularly takes at least eight daily doses of Datura in the form of the betel chew.”

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The water is poured in gourds and placed alongside five betel nuts and five betel leaves — four for the rivers and one for the sacred forest.

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And a cheesecake tinged with the flavour of betel leaves nods to outside influence.

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Paan, a betel nut leaf with slaked lime, rose petal jam and mouth fresheners like cardamom and cloves, has fascinated South Asians for centuries.

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There's no anxiety that chewing on a betel nut cannot soothe.

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