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no·pal

(nō-päl, nōpəl)

n. pl. no·pal·es(-pälĕs) also no·pals (-pəlz)

1. Any of various cacti having edible stems, especially the prickly pears.

2. The fleshy, oval, edible pad of such a cactus.

[Spanish, prickly pear plant, prickly pear pad, from Nahuatl nohpalli, of Proto-Uto-Aztecan origin; compare Cahuilla navet, Tohono O'odham nav, Hopi návu, and Northern Paiute nabu.]

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nopal

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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