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• cocoa
  cocoa

  noun

  a powder made from roasted, husked, and ground seeds of the cacao, Theobroma cacao, from which much of the fat has been removed.
• Cocoa
  Cocoa

  noun

  a city in E central Florida.

cocoa

¹ American  

[koh-koh] / ˈkoʊ koʊ /

noun

1. a powder made from roasted, husked, and ground seeds of the cacao, Theobroma cacao, from which much of the fat has been removed.

2. cacao.

3. a beverage made by mixing cocoa powder with hot milk or water.

4. brown; yellowish brown; reddish brown.

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adjective

1. of or relating to cocoa.

2. of the color of cocoa.

cocoa ² American  

[koh-koh] / ˈkoʊ koʊ /

noun

1. coco.

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Cocoa ³ American  

[koh-koh] / ˈkoʊ koʊ /

noun

1. a city in E central Florida.

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cocoa British  

/ ˈkəʊkəʊ /

noun

1. a powder made from cocoa beans after they have been roasted, ground, and freed from most of their fatty oil

2. a hot or cold drink made from cocoa and milk or water

3. 1. a light to moderate brown colour

   2. ( 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

1545–55; misspelling of coco, by confusion with cocoa ¹

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.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cocoa Cocoa

Unlike last time, when El Niño hit a market in deficit, supplies are ample today, partly thanks to confectioners shrinking chocolate bars and tweaking recipes to use less cocoa after the last price surge.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026

His firm is bullish for agricultural commodities in general, and is betting on rising cocoa prices in anticipation of El Niño disruption in West Africa and other exposed places, such as Ecuador.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026

As part of COSMOS, participants were randomly assigned to receive a daily multivitamin, a cocoa extract supplement, both supplements, or neither.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026

Experts say climate change has led to extreme rainfall and droughts which have decreased cocoa farmers' crops.

From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026

The cuts from scratching mosquito bites I got over the summer were now fading thanks to the cocoa butter Mama made me rub on my legs at night.

From "Root Magic" by Eden Royce

The cocoa was grown at the University of Reading's International Cocoa Quarantine Centre, a collection of more than 300 types of cocoa plant.

From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026

Cocoa extract did not produce a significant improvement in functional health scores across the study population as a whole.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026

Cocoa futures prices have been climbing, having only recently returned to the levels seen before the last El Niño.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 28, 2026

Cocoa is on course to rise by 15% after hitting its highest level in over three months this week, though prices are unlikely to return to levels seen in 2025, analysts say.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 8, 2026

He starts to argue, but Cocoa trots into the living room, her face covered in crumbs.

From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas