green bean

American  

noun

green beans plural

1. the immature green pod of the kidney bean, eaten as a vegetable.

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green bean British  

noun

1. any bean plant, such as the French bean, having narrow green edible pods when unripe

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• green beans
  plural

Etymology

Origin of green bean

An Americanism dating back to 1940–45

Example Sentences

To attract increasingly discerning consumers, Kroger has offered a precooked holiday meal for eight of turkey or ham, stuffing, green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, cranberry and gravy for about $11 a person.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 22, 2025

Aldi’s box, at $40 for 10 people, also includes the makings for green bean casserole and a pumpkin pie with whipped topping.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 22, 2025

You may wind up with three kinds of dressing and more green bean casserole than any group of eight could ever consume, but making room for other people’s family traditions is an act of love.

From Salon • Dec. 5, 2024

It found that 31% of U.S. adults don’t care for cranberry sauce while 29% would skip the sweet potatoes and 28% would forgo the green bean casserole.

From Washington Times • Nov. 22, 2023

I fumbled it a little, and caught it before I had green bean juice all over my only suit.

From "The Boy in the Black Suit" by Jason Reynolds