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nipa

American  
[nee-puh] / ˈni pə /

noun

  1. a palm, Nypa fruticans, of India, the Philippines, etc., whose foliage is used for thatching, basketry, etc.


nipa British  
/ ˈniːpə, ˈnaɪ- /

noun

  1. a palm tree, Nipa fruticans, of S and SE Asia, having feathery leaves, used for thatching, and edible fruit

  2. the fruit or thatch obtained from this tree

  3. the sap of this tree, used to make a liquor

"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

Etymology

Origin of nipa

1580–90; < New Latin < Malay nipah

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Once, its creek was home to thick forests of mangroves, but now most were gone, the victims of past environmental disasters and encroachment of invasive nipa palms, brought there long ago by the British.

From New York Times Sep. 3, 2021

Like many a creek of the Niger Delta in southern Nigeria, it was choked by nipa palms.

From New York Times Sep. 3, 2021

The hills round about were twinkling with the campfires of Chinese troops and in a nipa shack Chinese generals squatted with us about the burning logs, going over their plans.

From Time Magazine Archive

In his 53 years, Carlos Romulo had climbed fast & far from the nipa shacks and tin roofs of his little town of Camiling, 75 miles north of Manila in Luzon.

From Time Magazine Archive

The ruins of nipa houses showed them in fallen roof-trees and gaping breeches.

From The Code of the Mountains by Charles Neville Buck

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