noun
also ca·sa·va kəˈsävə, -ˈȧ-
( -s )
Etymology: Spanish cazabe cassava bread, from Taino caçábi
1. : any of several plants of the genus Manihot having fleshy rootstocks yielding a nutritious starch and cultivated throughout the tropics where it provides a staple food — called also manioc, tapioca plant ; see bitter cassava , cassareep , cassiri , sweet cassava
2. : the rootstock of the cassava plant used in making tapioca, cassava bread, and starch