1. Any of several small, mostly tropical palms having fan-shaped leaves, especially one of the genus Sabal, such as S. palmetto of the southeast United States. Also called sabal.
2. Leaf strips of any of these plants, used in weaving.

[Spanish palmito, diminutive of palma, palm tree, from Latin. See palm².]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.