Definition of cachou in English:

cachou

1dated A pleasant-smelling lozenge sucked to mask bad breath.
- ‘By referring to the notes we can learn that Davitt and Parnell were two Irish politicians of the time, and that a cachou was a popular cashew candy (the brushes aren't explained).’
- ‘Some of these, such as medicinal lozenges and scented cachous, have declined in popularity in the 20th century; but others, such as mints and sherbet, are still consumed enthusiastically.’
- ‘The predecessors of little floral cachous were used by court ladies as breath-fresheners.’
- ‘While in the mouth, the cachou will also help us prevent oral bacteria and confer us a fresh breath.’
2
variant of catechu

Late 16th century (in the sense catechu): from French, from Portuguese cachu, from Malay kacu. The lozenge sense dates from the early 18th century.

/kaˈSHo͞o//ˈkaSHo͞o/

Word of the Day

patrilocal

adjective

Further reading

Which Joe gave his name to ‘sloppy joes’? We look at five interesting sandwiches and their lexical origins.

Are you looking for a word for a foolish person? We explore twelve interesting words to describe the dunderheads in your life.

Before you run for the hills, let’s run through a list of ‘run’ expressions that are running through our minds.

The definitions of ‘buddy’ and ‘bro’ in the OED have recently been revised. We explore their history and increase in popularity.

Susie Dent explores the surprisingly literal story behind the phrase ‘to steal someone’s thunder’.