man-of-the-earth

[man-uhv-thee-urth, -urth]

noun

plural

men-of-the-earth, man-of-the-earths 

1. a morning glory, Ipomoea pandurata, of eastern North America, having white flowers and a very large, tuberous root.

Word History and Origins

Origin of man-of-the-earth¹

An Americanism dating back to 1825–35

Example Sentences

"If you were not such a man-of-the-earth, you would know that to cut out one line of one prayer is enough to set all the Rabbis excommunicating."

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One has to dig deep to find the huge, fleshy, potato-like root from which the vine derived its name of man-of-the-earth.

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