cocoa bean
noun
plural cocoa beans
: a dried, fermented, fatty seed of the fruit of a South American tropical evergreen tree (Theobroma cacao of the family Malvaceae) that is used in making cocoa, chocolate, and cocoa butter : cacao sense 1
The cocoa bean contains cocoa solids (particles) and about 53 percent cocoa butter.—
Rose Levy Beranbaum
Rose Levy BeranbaumExamples of cocoa bean in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
About 75% of the cacao fruit is discarded after the cocoa beans are harvested.
—Richard Collings, Axios, 15 Oct. 2024
Climate change is stressing rainforests where the highly sensitive cocoa bean grows, but chocolate lovers need not despair, say companies that are researching other ways to grow cocoa or develop cocoa substitutes.
—Mahnoor Khan, Fortune, 1 Sep. 2024
During the walking tour, visitors learn about the chocolate-making process—from picking the cocoa pods to drying the cocoa beans to making the bars and much more.
—Grace White, Essence, 9 Aug. 2024
Cadmium comes primarily through the cacao plant’s taking it up from the soil, while lead can be introduced at various points in the manufacturing process, including the harvesting, drying and fermenting of the cocoa bean.
—Akshay Syal, M.d., NBC News, 31 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for cocoa bean 
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Richard Collings, Axios, 15 Oct. 2024
Climate change is stressing rainforests where the highly sensitive cocoa bean grows, but chocolate lovers need not despair, say companies that are researching other ways to grow cocoa or develop cocoa substitutes.
—Mahnoor Khan, Fortune, 1 Sep. 2024
During the walking tour, visitors learn about the chocolate-making process—from picking the cocoa pods to drying the cocoa beans to making the bars and much more.
—Grace White, Essence, 9 Aug. 2024
Cadmium comes primarily through the cacao plant’s taking it up from the soil, while lead can be introduced at various points in the manufacturing process, including the harvesting, drying and fermenting of the cocoa bean.
—Akshay Syal, M.d., NBC News, 31 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for cocoa bean
Dictionary Entries Near cocoa bean
Cite this Entry
“Cocoa bean.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cocoa%20bean. Accessed 7 Nov. 2024.
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