chicle

• POS: Noun
• HYPHEN: chic=le

CIDE DICTIONARY

chicle, n. [Amer. Sp. chicle.].

 A gumlike substance obtained from the bully tree (Mimusops globosa) and sometimes also from the naseberry or sapodilla (Sapota zapotilla). It is more plastic than caoutchouc and more elastic than gutta-percha, as an adulterant of which it is used in England. It is used largely in the United States in making chewing gum.  [Webster 1913 Suppl.]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

chicle, n. the milky juice of the sapodilla tree, used in the manufacture of chewing-gum.

Etymology

Amer. Sp. f. Nahuatl tzietli