luffa

luffa is defined in Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1913) with 1 sense. The full text of each entry is reproduced verbatim below.

Definitions

  1. 1.(a) A small genus of tropical cucurbitaceous plants having white flowers, the staminate borne in racemes, and large fruits with a dry fibrous pericarp. The fruit of several species and the species themselves, esp. L. Ægyptiaca, are called dishcloth gourds. (b) Any plant of this genus, or its fruit. (c) The fibrous skeleton of the fruit, used as a sponge and in the manufacture of caps and women's hats; -- written also loofah.

Source: Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).

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