Plural of betel; the betel pepper plant or its leaves used in traditional preparation with areca nut.
From Malayalam 'vettila' via Portuguese and other European languages. 'Betel' specifically refers to the pepper plant (Piper betle) whose leaves wrap the areca nut preparation.
Betel leaves contain compounds that have antimicrobial and antioxidant properties, which is why South Asian traditional medicine has used them for digestive issues and oral hygiene for thousands of years.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.