Nopal \No"pal\, n. [Mexican nopalli.] (Bot.) A cactaceous plant ({Nopalea cochinellifera}), originally Mexican, on which the cochineal insect feeds, and from which it is collected. The name is sometimes given to other species of {Cactace[ae]}.
Cactaceae n : constituting the order Opuntiales [syn: {family Cactaceae}, {cactus family}]