garlic

American  

[gahr-lik] / ˈgɑr lɪk /

noun

1. a hardy plant, Allium sativum, of the amaryllis family, whose strongly pungent bulb is used in cooking and medicine.

2. any of various plants of the genus Allium related to the familiar culinary garlic A. sativum.

3. the bulb of Allium sativum, consisting of smaller bulbs, or cloves, used in cooking, sometimes in the form of a powder, a paste, or minced pieces.

4. the flavor or smell of this bulb.

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adjective

1. cooked, flavored, or seasoned with garlic, the pungent bulb of the Allium sativum plant.

   garlic bread;

   garlic salt.

2. of or relating to garlic.

garlic British  

/ ˈɡɑːlɪk /

noun

1. a hardy widely cultivated Asian alliaceous plant, Allium sativum, having a stem bearing whitish flowers and bulbils

2. 1. the bulb of this plant, made up of small segments (cloves) that have a strong odour and pungent taste and are used in cooking

   2. ( as modifier )

      a garlic taste

3. any of various other plants of the genus Allium

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Other Word Forms

• garlicked adjective
• garlicky adjective

Etymology

Origin of garlic

First recorded before 1000; Middle English garlec, Old English gārlēac ( gar “spear”, cognate with German Ger, + lēac leek )

Example Sentences

I started reaching for recipes that lived in that pocket: lemony chicken soup instead of creamy; brothy beans slicked with olive oil and garlic instead of something finished with cream.

From Salon

A bag of frozen mini-beef meatballs, dusted generously with paprika and garlic powder, will absolutely get you there.

From Salon

Soon he was stirring a fragrant stew flavored with crow garlic and big, fleshy wood-mushrooms.

From Literature

Ma had shown me how to marinate it with soya, garlic, and fermented black bean.

From Literature

I started to ask the question aloud but then watching the other girls spread out their bedclothes, underneath bundles of hanging parsnips and ropes of garlic, was answer enough.

From Literature