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Synonyms

herb

1 American  
[urb, hurb] / ɜrb, hɜrb /

noun

  1. a flowering plant whose stem above ground does not become woody.

  2. such a plant when valued for its medicinal properties, flavor, scent, or the like.

  3. Slang. Often the herb. marijuana.

  4. Archaic. herbage.

idioms

  1. give it the herbs, to use full power, especially in accelerating a car.

Herb 2 American  
[hurb] / hɜrb /

noun

  1. a male given name, form of Herbert.

herb British  
/ ɜːrb, hɜːb /

noun

  1. a seed-bearing plant whose aerial parts do not persist above ground at the end of the growing season; herbaceous plant

    1. any of various usually aromatic plants, such as parsley, rue, and rosemary, that are used in cookery and medicine

    2. ( as modifier )

      a herb garden

  3. a slang term for marijuana

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
herb Scientific  
/ ûrb /

  1. A flowering plant whose stem does not produce woody tissue and generally dies back at the end of each growing season. Both grasses and forbs are herbs.

Other Word Forms

  • herbless adjective
  • herblike adjective

Etymology

Origin of herb

1250–1300; Middle English herbe < Old French erbe, herbe < Latin herba

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.

“The cleanest of all the poultry is turkey, so I’ll do white-meat turkey or I’ll do sea bass. No dirty fish — no shrimp, no catfish, no tilapia. And I do my herbs every day.”

From Los Angeles Times

At Shanghai's "Niang Qing", a TCM doctor in a white coat diagnoses customers' physical conditions based on the pulse readings, before a mixologist crafts custom drinks incorporating the herbs and roots prescribed for their ailments.

From Barron's

She lived alone beyond the orchard, gathering herbs and other growing things and selling the medicines, ointments, and dyes she made from them.

From Literature

According to the review, the herb influences several processes at the same time.

From Science Daily

And then there are the finishing touches: cream, fresh herbs, a slick of oil, a splash of vinegar—the small, deliberate choices that make a soup feel finished rather than merely done.

From Salon

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.