sandbox tree

American  

noun

1. a tropical American tree, Hura crepitans, of the spurge family, bearing a furrowed, roundish fruit about the size of an orange that when ripe and dry bursts with a sharp report and scatters the seeds.

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sandbox tree British  

noun

1. a tropical American euphorbiaceous tree, Hura crepitans, having small woody seed capsules, which explode when ripe to scatter the seeds: formerly used to hold sand for blotting ink

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Etymology

Origin of sandbox tree

First recorded in 1740–50

Example Sentences

We also found trees that are well known in the forests of South America like Hura, or sandbox tree; Anacardium, a type of cashew tree; and Ochroma, or balsa.

From Salon