piñon

American  

[pin-yuhn, peen-yohn, peen-yohn, pee-nyawn] / ˈpɪn yən, ˈpin yoʊn, pinˈyoʊn, piˈnyɔn /

noun

plural

piñons,

plural

piñones

1. Also called pinyon pine,.  Also called nut pine.  Also any of several pines of southwestern North America, as Pinus monophylla or P. edulis, bearing edible, nutlike seeds.

2. Also called piñon nut.  the seed.

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Etymology

Origin of piñon

1825–35, < Spanish piñón, derivative of piña pine cone

Example Sentences

From lowest elevation to highest, this included ponderosa pine, piñon pine, Englemann spruce, Douglas fir and limber pine.

From Science Daily • Nov. 3, 2023

In the distance, I could make out the silhouette of the Highland Range, crowned with dark piñon and juniper forests.

From New York Times • Jan. 24, 2023

When the piñon crop is good, jays start the morning by eating seeds.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 26, 2022

Indigenous communities in the Southwest discovered and ate piñon nuts from the Pinus edulis tree many years before Europeans arrived, as evidenced by cracked nutshells found at archaeological sites.

From Salon • Feb. 3, 2022

So, under a blanket of starry skies and piñon smoke, out of habit, she whispered her stories to me in Spanglish.

From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera