the plant family Bombacaceae, typified by tropical deciduous trees having palmate leaves, large and often showy solitary or clustered flowers, and dry fruit with a woolly pulp, and including the baobab and silk-cotton tree.
Origin: < NL (Linnaeus): the silk-cotton tree genus; ML: silk, cotton, alter. of L bombȳx silkworm, silk < Gk bómbȳx silkworm; see bombycid
[bom-baks] 
