vegetable

English

/ˈvɛd͡ʒtəbəl/, /ˈvɛd͡ʒətəbəl/

noun
Definitions
  • Any plant.
  • A plant raised for some edible part of it, such as the leaves, roots, fruit or flowers, but excluding any plant considered to be a fruit, grain, herb, or spice in the culinary sense.
  • The edible part of such a plant.
  • (figuratively) A person whose brain (or, infrequently, body) has been damaged so that they cannot interact with the surrounding environment; a person in a persistent vegetative state.

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English vegetable derived from Old French vegetable derived from Latin vegetābilis (able to live and grow).

Origin

Latin

vegetābilis

Gloss

able to live and grow

Timeline

Distribution of cognates by language

Geogrpahic distribution of cognates

Cognates and derived terms