beet

American  

[beet] / bit /

noun

1. any of various biennial plants belonging to the genus Beta, of the amaranth family, especially B. vulgaris, having a fleshy red or white root.

2. the edible root of such a plant.

3. the leaves of such a plant, served as a salad or cooked vegetable.

---

beet British  

/ biːt /

noun

1. any chenopodiaceous plant of the genus Beta , esp the Eurasian species B. vulgaris , widely cultivated in such varieties as the sugar beet, mangelwurzel, beetroot, and spinach beet See also chard

2. the leaves of any of several varieties of this plant, which are cooked and eaten as a vegetable

3. the US name for beetroot

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• beetlike
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of beet

First recorded before 1000; Middle English bete, Old English bēte, from Latin bēta

Explanation

A beet is a reddish-purple colored root vegetable. You can roast beets, slice them, and add them to a salad. When you peel a cooked beet, your fingers will be temporarily stained red. Beets are distinctive for their deep color and their round shape — though there are also a few varieties that are yellow. You can eat both the round, fleshy part of a beet plant and also its green leaves. The British version of beet, which is thought to have a Celtic origin, is beetroot.

Related Words

• chard