fennel
Americannoun
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a plant, Foeniculum vulgare, of the parsley family, having feathery leaves and umbels of small, yellow flowers.
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Also fennel seed the aromatic fruits of Foeniculum vulgare, used in cooking and medicine.
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any of various plants more or less similar to Foeniculum vulgare, such as Ferula communis giant fennel, a tall, ornamental plant.
noun
Etymology
Origin of fennel
First recorded before 900; Middle English fenel, Old English fenol, variant of finu ( g ) l from unattested Vulgar Latin fenuclum, for Latin fēniculum, faeniculum, equivalent to faeni- (combining form of faenum “hay”) + -culum -cle 1
Vocabulary lists containing fennel
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Spinach, arugula, fennel, celery, and kale are also good dietary sources.
From Science Daily ● May 25, 2026
I usually get a bunch of salads and the crab and fennel soup.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 23, 2026
When I finally nailed a roast chicken — buttered and oiled, stuffed with lemon wedges and hunks of onion and fennel — I felt like a goddess.
From Salon ● Dec. 20, 2025
The packaging for Molecule pills often lists "natural ingredients" such as dandelion root and fennel seed extract.
From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2025
“Use it fresh,” Annabella had said of the fennel.
From "Gathering Blue" by Lois Lowry
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
