cajeput

American  

[kaj-uh-puht, -poot] / ˈkædʒ ə pət, -ˌpʊt /

Or cajaput,

noun

1. a tree, Melaleuca leucadendron, of the myrtle family, native to Australia and New Guinea, having papery bark and yielding a greenish, aromatic oil cajeputoil used in medicine and perfumes.

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cajeput British  

/ ˈkædʒəˌpʊt /

noun

1. a variant spelling of cajuput

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Etymology

Origin of cajeput

< New Latin cajuputi < Dutch kajoe-poetih ( -olie ) < Malay kayu putih the cajeput tree ( kayu white + putih tree)

Example Sentences

For example, there have been suggestions that you should drink or inhale cajeput oil, a plant-derived oil usually used to treat skin irritations, to prevent coronavirus.

From BBC • Jul. 19, 2021

The real terror of the Everglades is Australia's Melaleuca quinquenervia, also known as cajeput, punk tree and paperbark tree.

From Time Magazine Archive

Oil of turpentine, four ounces; camphor, six drachms; oil of cajeput, two drachms.

From Burroughs' Encyclopaedia of Astounding Facts and Useful Information, 1889 by Burroughs, Barkham

From the odorous leaves of the Arbor alba is extracted a portion of the aromatic cajeput oil.

From The Commercial Products of the Vegetable Kingdom Considered in Their Various Uses to Man and in Their Relation to the Arts and Manufactures; Forming a Practical Treatise & Handbook of Reference for the Colonist, Manufacturer, Merchant, and Consumer, on the Cultivation, Preparation for Shipment, and Commercial Value, &c. of the Various Substances Obtained From Trees and Plants, Entering into the Husbandry of Tropical and Sub-tropical Regions, &c. by Simmonds, P. L.

This tree is known in different localities by a variety of names, such as "spice-bush," "balm of heaven," "sassafras laurel," "cajeput," "California bay-tree," "California olive," "mountain laurel," and "California laurel."

From The Wild Flowers of California: Their Names, Haunts, and Habits by Parsons, Mary Elizabeth