acai

noun

ˌä-ˌsä-ˈē 

-sī-ˈē

variants or less commonly açai

1

a

or acai berry or less commonly açai berry : a small, dark purple, berrylike fruit with a juicy pulp that is often used in beverages or eaten raw and that is produced by a tall, slender palm (Euterpe oleracea) native to tropical rainforests of Central and South America

Note: Acai is a single-seeded drupe that grows in large clusters. In the Brazilian Amazon [Rainforest], acai makes up an important part of the local diet and is often prepared as a mash with cassava pulp.

b

or acai palm or less commonly açai palm : the palm (Euterpe oleracea) that produces acai berries

2

: a beverage made from the juice of the acai berry

Rio de Janeiro is the city that worships health and beauty and where the healthy and the beautiful drink acai.

—Alex Bellosz

Examples of acai in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

For the full experience, order room service for breakfast, or make your way down to Island Brasserie for an acai bowl or omelet. —Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 17 June 2024

Dine & spa Subsequent newcomers include The Kiosk, a café that pulls in townies with an unbeatable beachfront location where diners tuck into egg-and-bacon rolls, acai bowls, and perfectly textured flat whites at picnic tables under nautical parasols. —Chloe Sachdev, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 May 2024

Guests at Playa Bowls can pick from an extensive menu of creative bowls or customize their own, choosing from a number of proprietary blends and bases made with what are called superfoods, including pure acai, chia pudding, coconut, kale, banana, oatmeal and more. —Melanie Savage, Hartford Courant, 21 Jan. 2024

Other bowls omit acai like the Superfruit Pitaya with dragon fruit and blueberry and the Blue Hawaii with almond milk, dates and coconut butter. —John Metcalfe, The Mercury News, 21 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Brazilian Portuguese assaí, uaçaí, açaí, the palm Euterpe oleracea, borrowed from Tupi *ɨβasaí, from ɨβá "plant, fruit" + an element of uncertain meaning

First Known Use

circa 1861, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Phrases Containing acai

• acai berry
• acai palm