mushroom
Americannoun
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mushrooms
plural
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any of various fleshy fungi including the toadstools, puffballs, coral fungi, morels, etc.
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any of several edible species, especially of the family Agaricaceae, as Agaricus campestris meadow mushroom, or field mushroom, cultivated for food in the U.S.
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anything of similar shape or correspondingly rapid growth.
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a large, mushroom-shaped cloud of smoke or rubble, formed in the atmosphere as a result of an explosion, especially a nuclear explosion.
adjective
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of, consisting of, or containing mushrooms.
a mushroom omelet.
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resembling a mushroom in shape or form.
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of rapid growth and often brief duration.
mushroom towns of the gold-rush days.
verb (used without object)
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mushrooms,
present (3rd person singular)
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mushroomed,
past participle, past
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mushrooming
present participle
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to spread, grow, or develop quickly.
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to gather mushrooms.
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to have or assume the shape of a mushroom.
noun
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the fungus producing any of these structures
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something resembling a mushroom in shape or rapid growth
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( as modifier )
mushroom expansion
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verb
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to grow rapidly
demand mushroomed overnight
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to assume a mushroom-like shape
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to gather mushrooms
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Any of various fungi that produce a fleshy fruiting body, which usually consists of a stalk topped by an umbrella-shaped cap. Many mushrooms are basidiomycetes. Some species of mushrooms are edible, though many are poisonous. The term mushroom is often applied to the stalk and cap alone.
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See more at basidiomycete
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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mushroomsimple
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mushroomssimple
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have mushroomedperfect
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has mushroomedperfect
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am mushroomingprogressive
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are mushroomingprogressive
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is mushroomingprogressive
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have been mushroomingperfect progressive
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has been mushroomingperfect progressive
Past
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mushroomedsimple
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had mushroomedperfect
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was mushroomingprogressive
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were mushroomingprogressive
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had been mushroomingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of mushroom
First recorded in 1350–1400; alteration (by folk etymology) of Middle English muscheron, musseroun, from Middle French mousseron, ultimately from Late Latin mussiriōn-, stem of mussiriō
Explanation
A mushroom is the main body of a certain type of fungus. Edible mushrooms include portobellos and shiitakes. Don't mess around with the inedible types. Walk in the woods after a few days of rain, and you're sure to see mushrooms growing from the damp forest floor. Mushrooms like moist environments, and many mushrooms also grow incredibly fast, which is where the verb form of mushroom, "grow and spread quickly," comes from. The word's origin is ultimately uncertain, although some experts believe it's related to the French mousse, or "moss."
Vocabulary lists containing mushroom
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.
See Examples For:
Still, says Drolma, there’s nothing like mushroom hunting.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026
With the decline of logging and cannabis as livelihoods, they see income from tourists attracted by ultramarathons, mushroom foraging and other outdoor activities as a financial savior.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
One slightly stranger favorite is ground beef mixed with minced mushrooms and a little mushroom gravy powder, which can become an excellent head start on stew, meatballs, meatloaf or cottage pie.
From Salon ● Aug. 25, 2026
Australian toxic mushroom killer Erin Patterson launches an appeal on Wednesday against her conviction in a triple-murder case that made headlines worldwide.
From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026
Even the letter about the blusher mushroom is gone.
From "The Cruel Prince" by Holly Black
My supermarket fairly regularly discounts a “gourmet blend” of cremini, shiitake and oyster mushrooms, and I love it.
From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026
Watch the mushrooms more than the clock; a mix containing oyster mushrooms behaves differently than a pan full of white buttons.
From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026
And once my fall appetite returns — the appetite for the beige and the brown — I make mushrooms.
From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026
The supply chain bringing matsutake mushrooms from under the tree stumps of southwestern China to its fanciest hotels offers a window into the country’s logistical prowess.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026
In his wake, the mushrooms drooped back toward the earth, lifeless.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
To understand how the people mover mushroomed in price, let’s start at the beginning.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 20, 2026
That all changed as the Premier League's global appeal mushroomed.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
Since last fall, when Kakaiya began selling the model, clinician interest has mushroomed.
From Slate ● Jun. 7, 2026
That image mushroomed into an entire online subculture and inspired a teenager named Kane Parsons to make a series of hugely popular videos on YouTube.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 31, 2026
Th e sound of the chenda mushroomed over the temple, accentuating the silence of the encompassing night.
From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy
That is at least least partly due to Proposition 103, which was passed in 1988 in an era of mushrooming auto premiums.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
Meanwhile, new LNG terminals were mushrooming on the Gulf Coast, and Qatar was on track to expand its export capacity more than 40% starting around midyear.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 7, 2026
The technology stands accused of fuelling misinformation, copyright lawsuits are mushrooming, and many companies have cited AI adoption as an explanation for mass layoffs.
From Barron's ● Nov. 25, 2025
Drug deductibles—the amount you pay up front before coverage kicks in—are mushrooming for many.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2025
Margie had three big brothers instead of one, and one day in October the whole bunch of them went out mushrooming.
From "Miracles on Maple Hill" by Virginia Sorensen
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.
