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kex

[keks]
noun British Dialect.
  1. the dry, usually hollow stem or stalk of various plants, especially of large plants belonging to the parsley family, as cow parsnip or wild chervil.
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Origin of kex

1350–1400; Middle English; of uncertain origin
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for kex

Historical Examples

  • Kex then trys his luck, but is unhorsed so rudely that arm and leg are broken.

    Studies on the Legend of the Holy Grail

    Alfred Nutt

  • Kex, keks, n. the dry stalk of the hemlock or other umbelliferous plants.

British Dictionary definitions for kex

kex

noun
  1. any of several large hollow-stemmed umbelliferous plants, such as cow parsnip and chervil
  2. the dried stalks of any of these plants
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Word Origin

C14: of obscure origin
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

Word Origin and History for kex

n.

"dry, hollow plant stem," late 14c., of uncertain origin. Klein says ultimately from Latin cicuta "hemlock."

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper