cacao

noun

ca·​cao kə-ˈkau̇  kə-ˈkā-(ˌ)ō 

plural cacaos

1

or cacao bean : a dried, fermented, fatty seed of the fruit of a South American evergreen tree (Theobroma cacao of the family Malvaceae) that is used in making cocoa, chocolate, and cocoa butter : cocoa bean

… polyphenols also make cacao beans taste astringent and bitter.

—Patricia Gadsby

2

or cacao tree : a tree having small yellowish flowers followed by fleshy pods from which cacao is obtained

Chocolate starts as the seeds in the fruits of the cacao tree, a tropical plant that produces flowers and fruit not at the tips of branches but on the trunk.

—Kenneth Chang

The cacao tree is native to the tropical countries of South America, but now grows in other parts of the world, notably Africa, the West Indies, and Central America.

—Joanna Morris

Illustration of cacao

• cacao 2

Examples of cacao in a Sentence

a farmer who grows cacao

Recent Examples on the Web

Now the physicist and tech entrepreneur is focused on chocolate — not from cacao harvested in tropical climates more suited to the plant, but from cacao grown right here in Southern California. —Laurie Ochoa, Los Angeles Times, 22 Mar. 2025

Across West Africa, where 70% of the world’s cacao is grown, and in the Americas and Southeast Asia, shifting moisture levels threaten the delicate balance required for production. —Narcisa Pricope, The Conversation, 10 Feb. 2025

Dark chocolate must be made with at least 35% chocolate liquor, the liquid mixture of roasted, ground cacao nibs. —Sam Stone, Bon Appétit, 16 Dec. 2024

About one in five of the bananas imported to the US comes from Ecuador, which also supplies shrimp, tuna, cacao and cut flowers. —David Culver, CNN, 5 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Spanish, from Nahuatl cacahuatl

First Known Use

1555, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing cacao

• cacao butter
• crème de cacao

Rhymes for cacao

• buteo
• vireo

Kids Definition

cacao

noun

ca·​cao kə-ˈkau̇ 

kə-ˈkā-ō

plural cacaos

1

: a South American tree that bears small yellowish flowers followed by fleshy yellow pods containing many seeds

2

: the dried fatty seeds of the cacao from which cocoa and chocolate are made

called also cacao bean

Medical Definition

cacao

noun

ca·​cao kə-ˈkau̇  kə-ˈkā-(ˌ)ō 

plural cacaos

1

: the dried partly fermented fatty seeds of a South American evergreen tree (Theobroma cacao of the family Sterculiaceae) that are used in making cocoa, chocolate, and cocoa butter

called also cacao bean, cocoa bean

2

: a tree having small yellowish flowers followed by fleshy pods with many seeds that bear cacao

called also chocolate tree