balata
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Related to balata: balata tree, Manilkara bidentata
ba·la·ta
(bə-lä′tə)n.
The nonelastic rubber obtained from the latex of the South American tree Manilkara bidentata. It was formerly used in the manufacture of golf-ball covers and machine belts.
[Latin American Spanish balatá, balata, of Carib origin.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
balata
(ˈbælətə)n
1. (Plants) a tropical American sapotaceous tree, Manilkara bidentata, yielding a latex-like sap
2. (Plants) a rubber-like gum obtained from this sap: used as a substitute for gutta-percha
[from American Spanish, of Carib origin]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
ba•la•ta
(bəˈlɑ tə, ˈbæl ə tə)n., pl. -tas.
1. bully tree.
2. a gum obtained from the latex of the bully tree, used in golf ball covers and machinery belts.
[1855–60; < American Spanish < Carib]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
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| Noun | 1. |  balata - when dried yields a hard substance used e.g. in golf ballsbalata tree, beefwood, bully tree, Manilkara bidentata, balata - a tropical hardwood tree yielding balata gum and heavy red timber gum - any of various substances (soluble in water) that exude from certain plants; they are gelatinous when moist but harden on drying |
| 2. |  balata - a tropical hardwood tree yielding balata gum and heavy red timberbalata, gutta balata - when dried yields a hard substance used e.g. in golf balls tree - a tall perennial woody plant having a main trunk and branches forming a distinct elevated crown; includes both gymnosperms and angiosperms |
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