bamboo
[ bam-boo ]
/ bæmˈbu /
noun, plural bam·boos.
any of the woody or treelike tropical and semitropical grasses of the genera Bambusa, Phyllostachys, Dendrocalamus, and allied genera, having woody, usually hollow stems with stalked blades and flowering only after years of growth.
the stem of such a plant, used as a building material and for making furniture, poles, etc.
Origin of bamboo
1590–1600; spelling variant of earlier
bambu < Malay, apparently < Dravidian; compare Kannada
bambu, bombu a large, hollow bam-boo (or directly < Dravidian); replacing
bambus < Dutch
bamboes; compare New Latin
bambūsa
Words nearby bamboo
Example sentences from the Web for bamboo
British Dictionary definitions for bamboo
bamboo
/ (bæmˈbuː) /
noun
any tall treelike tropical or semitropical fast-growing grass of the genus Bambusa, having hollow woody-walled stems with ringed joints and edible young shoots (bamboo shoots)
the stem of any of these plants, used for building, poles, and furniture
any of various bamboo-like grasses of the genera Arundinaria, Phyllostachys or Dendrocalamus
(modifier)
made of bamboo
a bamboo fence
Word Origin for bamboo
C16: probably from Malay
bambu