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

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

glasswort

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 Mary Elizabeth Parsons

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 Grant Allen

The glasswort has leaves, it is true, but they are thick and fleshy, continuous with the stem, and each one terminating in a sharp, needle-like spine, which effectually protects the weed against all browsing aggressors.

From Science in Arcady by Grant Allen

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 Matilda Betham-Edwards

The fleshy leaves at a little distance suggest the form of many plants of brackish marsh and creek edges, and even the glasswort itself.

From The Garden, You, and I by Mabel Osgood Wright

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