allium

[ al-ee-uh m ]

/ ˈæl i əm /

noun

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.

Nearby words

allision, allison, alliterate, alliteration, alliterative, allium, allmouth, allness, allo-, allo., alloa

Origin of allium

1800–10; < New Latin, Latin: garlic

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for allium

In Tennessee and West Virginia, festivals are held to celebrate allium tricoccum, which are also known as wild leeks.
What to Eat: Spring Feast|Cookstr.com|March 9, 2010|DAILY BEAST
According to Roxburgh,243 Allium ascalonicum is much cultivated in India.
Origin of Cultivated Plants|Alphonse De Candolle
Ledum is highly recommended by some Physicians, and is doubtless of some value, but it is not to be compared with the Allium.
An Epitome of Homeopathic Healing Art|B. L. Hill
From all these facts I am led to believe that Allium ascalonicum is not a species.
Origin of Cultivated Plants|Alphonse De Candolle

Both had barley in their nose-bags, but pawed and wriggled them off in order to get at this plant, a species of allium.
Journeys in Persia and Kurdistan, Volume II (of 2)|Isabella L. Bird
Among our species of the Allium genus, shallots, in consequence of their mild taste, are preferred.
A History of Inventions, Discoveries, and Origins, Volume II (of 2)|Johann Beckman

British Dictionary definitions for allium

allium

/ (ˈælɪəm) /

noun

any plant of the genus Allium, such as the onion, garlic, shallot, leek, or chive: family Alliaceae

Word Origin for allium

C19: from Latin: garlic

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012