mesquite

¹ American  

[me-skeet, mes-keet] / mɛˈskit, ˈmɛs kit /

Or mesquit

noun

1. any of several usually spiny trees or shrubs belonging to the genus Prosopis, of the legume family, as P. juliflora or P. glandulosa, of western North America, having bipinnate leaves and beanlike pods and often forming dense thickets.

2. the wood of such a tree or shrub, used especially in grilling or barbecuing food.

3. any of various similar or related plants.

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Mesquite ² American  

[me-skeet, mi-] / mɛˈskit, mɪ- /

noun

1. a city in NE Texas, E of Dallas.

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mesquite British  

/ mɛˈskiːt, ˈmɛskiːt /

noun

1. Also called: algarroba.   honey locust.   honey mesquite.  any small leguminous tree of the genus Prosopis, esp the tropical American P. juliflora, whose sugary pods ( mesquite beans ) are used as animal fodder

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Etymology

Origin of mesquite

1830–40, < Mexican Spanish mezquite < Nahuatl mizquitl

Example Sentences

North of the pavement, the North Algodones Dunes Wilderness holds a quieter terrain, where sunflower, ephedra and honey mesquite anchor the sand in subtle defiance of the wind.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 7, 2026

Hidden on Pico Boulevard behind no obvious sign and characterized by hood-free mesquite grills and stacked wine crates, the place exuded a secret charm.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 12, 2025

Birds sing among dense copses of mesquite trees; flowers hang heavily from bushes; ocelots and jaguars pass through.

From Slate • May 26, 2025

About 100 native trees, including desert willows, ironwoods and mesquite, were donated by a local nursery and planted.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 18, 2024

More often than not, they did not believe in conversation, their dispositions reflecting the rough, atonal quality of the land, which after the droughts consisted mostly of the gnarled limbs of low-lying mesquite bushes.

From "Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream" by H.G. Bissinger