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monacillo

[ mon-uh-see-oh; Spanish maw-nah-see-yaw ]
/ ˌmɒn əˈsi oʊ; Spanish ˌmɔ nɑˈsi yɔ /
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noun, plural mo·na·cil·los [mon-uh-see-ohz; Spanish maw-nah-see-yaws]. /ˌmɒn əˈsi oʊz; Spanish ˌmɔ nɑˈsi yɔs/.

a low shrub, Malvaviscus arboreus, of tropical America, having scarlet flowers and berrylike fruit that is sticky when young.

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Origin of monacillo

<American Spanish, Spanish: literally, altar-boy, earlier monazillo, monaziello<Vulgar Latin *monachellus, equivalent to Late Latin monach(us) monk + -ellus diminutive suffix; see -elle

Words nearby monacillo

Monacan, monacetin, monachal, monachism, monacid, monacillo, Monaco, monad, monadelphous, monades, monadic
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
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