glasswort

American  

[glas-wurt, -wawrt, glahs-] / ˈglæsˌwɜrt, -ˌwɔrt, ˈglɑs- /

noun

1. any of several plants of the genus Salicornia, of the amaranth family, having succulent stems with rudimentary leaves, formerly used, when burned to ashes, as a source of soda for glassmaking.

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glasswort British  

/ ˈɡlɑːsˌwɜːt /

noun

1. Also called: marsh samphire.  any plant of the chenopodiaceous genus Salicornia, of salt marshes, having fleshy stems and scalelike leaves: formerly used as a source of soda for glass-making

2. another name for saltwort

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Etymology

Origin of glasswort

First recorded in 1590–1600; glass + wort ²

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

glasswort

There the local flora was represented by a wide carpet of samphire, a small umbelliferous plant that keeps quite nicely, which also boasts the names glasswort, saxifrage, and sea fennel.

From Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Walter, F. P.

Though a humble enough plant in itself, the samphire, or glasswort, is the source of a wonderful glory in our marshes in the autumn.

From The Wild Flowers of California: Their Names, Haunts, and Habits by Parsons, Mary Elizabeth

The waving reeds against the pale sky, the sweeps of glasswort and terebinth, show delicate gradations of colour; harmonious, too, the tints of far-off sea and environing hills.

From In the Heart of the Vosges And Other Sketches by a "Devious Traveller" by Betham-Edwards, Matilda

Salsola Kali, an allied plant with rigid, fleshy, spinous-pointed leaves, which was used for the same purpose, was known as prickly glasswort.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 1 "Gichtel, Johann" to "Glory" by Various

Still more cactus-like in general effect is another familiar English seaside weed, the kali or glasswort, so called because it was formerly burnt to extract the soda.

From Science in Arcady by Allen, Grant