allium
[al-ee-uh m]
- any bulbous plant belonging to the genus Allium, of the amaryllis family, having an onion odor and flowers in a round cluster, including the onion, leek, shallot, garlic, and chive.
- a substance occurring in garlic bulbs that has antibiotic properties.
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Origin of allium
1800–10; < New Latin, Latin: garlic
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for allium
Contemporary Examples
In Tennessee and West Virginia, festivals are held to celebrate allium tricoccum, which are also known as wild leeks.
Historical Examples
The Mohammedans do not seem to have reverenced the Allium tribe.
StoryologyBenjamin Taylor
From the bruised bulbs or cloves of Allium sativum, or garlic.
Cooley's Practical Receipts, Volume IIArnold Cooley
Moly seems to have been Allium moly, one of the onion or garlic family.
The Romance of Plant LifeG. F. Scott Elliot
From all these facts I am led to believe that Allium ascalonicum is not a species.
Origin of Cultivated PlantsAlphonse De Candolle
There are several kinds of Muilla, much like Brodiaea and very much like Allium, but with no onion taste or smell.
Field Book of Western Wild FlowersMargaret Armstrong
allium
- any plant of the genus Allium, such as the onion, garlic, shallot, leek, or chive: family Alliaceae
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Word Origin
C19: from Latin: garlic
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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