məˈhō noun
( -s )
Etymology: French mahot, maho, from Taino maho
1. also ma·ho “ : any of various chiefly tropical trees with strong bast fibers: as
a.
(1) : majagua
(2) : portia tree
b. : any of several trees of the family Thymelaeaceae ; especially : a West Indian tree ( Daphnopsis caribaea )
c. : any of several trees of the genus Sterculia ; especially : a So. American tree ( S. pruriens ) that yields a pale brown lustrous straight-grained wood
2. also maho : the wood or fiber of a mahoe
3.
[Maori]
: a small shrubby New Zealand tree ( Melicytus ramiflorus ) of the family Violaceae with dark green alternate leaves and few-seeded purple berries — called also whitey wood