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coontie

[koon-tee]
noun
  1. either of two arrowroots, Zamia integrifolia or Z. floridana, of Florida, having a short trunk, pinnate leaves, and cones: Z. floridana is an endangered species.
  2. the flour produced from its starch.

Origin of coontie

1785–95, Americanism; < Florida Creek kuntí· applied to arrowroot and the starch derived therefrom, earlier (in Georgia) applied to the smilax
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
British Dictionary definitions for coontie

coontie

noun
  1. an evergreen plant, Zamia floridana of S Florida, related to the cycads and having large dark green leathery leaves: family Zamiaceae
  2. a starch derived from the underground stems of this plant

Word Origin for coontie

C19: from Seminole kunti flour from this plant
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