Wiktionary

kapok

English edit

WOTD – 29 June 2021

Etymology edit

 
Kapok (sense 1), a silky fibre obtained from seed pods of the silk-cotton tree (Ceiba pentandra).
 
The kapok (sense 2) or silk-cotton tree (Ceiba pentandra).
 
 
The Malabar silk-cotton tree (Bombax ceiba) is also known as the kapok (sense 3) as its fruit produce a fibre like that of the silk-cotton tree.

Borrowed from Malay kapuk (“silky fibre from the silk-cotton tree; Ceiba pentandra”).[1]

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

kapok (countable and uncountable, plural kapoks)

  1. A silky fibre obtained from seed pods of the silk-cotton tree (Ceiba pentandra) used for insulation and stuffing for mattresses, pillows, etc.
    Synonym: mumian
    • 1977, John Le Carré, The Honourable Schoolboy, Folio Society, published 2010, page 492:
      The moon came out of hiding and for a moment Jerry forgot his anxiety as a little grey-clad figure, small and sturdy [...], in a kapok coat and bulging proletarian cap, lowered himself over the side and leapt for the waiting arms of the sampan's crew.
    • 1985, Peter Carey, Illywhacker, Faber & Faber, published 2003, page 39:
      You can stuff them full of kapok to make a decent cushion and there is nothing better to carry frogs in.
    • 2014 [1993], Tim Winton, Land's Edge, Picador, page 15:
      A still summer night a world away in a house that smells of cactus and dust and musty kapok.
  2. A silk-cotton tree (Ceiba pentandra).
    Synonyms: kapok tree, (Haiti) mapou, mumian
  3. A cotton tree, Malabar silk-cotton tree, or red silk-cotton tree (Bombax ceiba).
    Synonym: kapok tree

Alternative forms edit

Derived terms edit

Translations edit

silk-cotton tree (Ceiba pentandra) — see silk-cotton tree
Bombax ceiba — see Bombax ceiba

References edit

  1. ^ Compare “kapok, n.”, in OED Online  ⁠, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, September 2018; “kapok, n.”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.

Further reading edit

Anagrams edit

Cebuano edit

Pronunciation edit

  • Hyphenation: ka‧pok

Noun edit

kapok

  1. (rare) the kapok tree or silk-cotton tree (Ceiba pentandra)
  2. (rare) the fiber obtained from this tree

French edit

Noun edit

kapok m (plural kapoks)

  1. kapok

Further reading edit

Hungarian edit

Etymology edit

kap +‎ -ok

Pronunciation edit

  • IPA(key): [ˈkɒpok]
  • Hyphenation: ka‧pok

Verb edit

kapok

  1. first-person singular indicative present indefinite of kap

Derived terms edit

Compound words

Polish edit

 
Polish Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia pl
 
kapok sense 1
 
kapok sense 2

Etymology edit

Internationalism; compare English kapok, French kapok, German Kapok, ultimately from Malay kapuk.

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

kapok m inan (related adjective kapokowy)

  2. kapok (silky fiber obtained from seed pods of the silk-cotton tree (Ceiba pentandra) used for insulation and stuffing for mattresses, pillows, etc.)
  4. life jacket (article of protective clothing that is designed to keep the wearer's head floating above the surface of the water)
    Synonyms: kamizelka ratunkowa, pas ratunkowy

Declension edit

Declension of kapok
singular plural
nominative kapok kapoki
genitive kapoka kapoków
dative kapokowi kapokom
accusative kapok kapoki
instrumental kapokiem kapokami
locative kapoku kapokach
vocative kapoku kapoki

Further reading edit

  • kapok in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
  • kapok in Polish dictionaries at PWN
  • kapok in PWN's encyclopedia

Tagalog edit

Etymology edit

Borrowed from Malay kapuk.

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

kapok (Baybayin spelling ᜃᜉᜓᜃ᜔)

  1. kapok (Ceiba pentandra)
    Synonyms: bulak, bulak-kahoy, bulak-sina, buboy
  2. the silky fibre obtained from the seed pods of this tree
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