Etymology: American Spanish, from Spanish, adjective, catlike, striped like a civet cat, from gato cat, from Late Latin cattus; from the streaks in the wood — more at cat
: a tropical American timber tree (Astronium graveolens) of the family Anacardiaceae that yields a hard dense heavy black-streaked brown timber used as a cabinet wood and that has bark rich in tannin
Useful english dictionary. 2012.