screw bean


noun

a tree, Prosopis pubescens, of the legume family, native to the southwestern U.S., bearing twisted pods used as fodder.
the pod itself.
Also called tornillo.

Origin of screw bean

An Americanism dating back to 1865–70

Example sentences from the Web for screw bean

  • The screw-bean or screw-pod mesquite is a small slender-trunked tree with sharp spines at the bases of the hoary foliage.

    Trees Worth Knowing |Julia Ellen Rogers