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:
In 2024, a new species of mushroom, Hydropus inopinatus, was discovered in Burnham Beeches, Buckinghamshire.
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2026
I preferred the big cities—Pamplona, Logroño, Burgos, León—where I could limp into the town square and reward myself with museums, cathedrals, mushroom pinxtos or paella that could feed 35 people.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
Why is Australia's mushroom murder back in the headlines?
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
Some evidence accepted by the judge -- relating to Facebook messages, cell towers and posts of death cap mushroom sightings -- was not relevant or unfairly prejudicial to her case, her lawyer said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026
The boy smelled the mushroom and bit into it and stood chewing.
From "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy
Caroline Haines, the chair of the City Corporation's Epping Forest and Commons Committee, said posts showing mushrooms being collected "can encourage others to follow suit" and urged people to "click, don't pick".
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2026
It carries enough bright acid to pair with grilled meats and creamy pasta sauces, enough earthiness to complement mushrooms and truffles and a savoriness that plays well with roasted veggies and herb-heavy dishes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 2, 2026
Spermidine is produced naturally by human cells and is also present in foods including wheat germ, mushrooms, parmesan, and cheddar.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 21, 2026
The dry powder is more umami-heavy with notes of garlic and shiitake mushrooms and spicy, courtesy of gochugaru, or Korean red chili pepper.
From Salon ● Jul. 19, 2026
Nothing about blusher mushrooms, nothing about poisons at all.
From "The Cruel Prince" by Holly Black
What began in 1995 as Parton's modest giveaway of 6,000 books to needy children has mushroomed into an operation involving hundreds of local groups and multiple publishers.
From Barron's ● Aug. 27, 2026
Cofnas’s case soon mushroomed into a test of free speech at Cambridge, with academics publicly urging Cambridge to either terminate Cofnas or keep him on at all costs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
Since last fall, when Kakaiya began selling the model, clinician interest has mushroomed.
From Slate ● Jun. 7, 2026
Complaints have mushroomed for months about World Cup ticket price fluctuations caused by sophisticated algorithms that can dramatically increase costs based on demand.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2026
The vision fizzled, and a poof of smoke mushroomed from its surface.
From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega
It is visible in the mushrooming of private schools in small towns and villages.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
In nursing homes mushrooming across the Mexican border, elderly Americans are turning up for low-cost care.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 26, 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
Moreover, the rule addressed a marketing process that is destined to keep mushrooming.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 11, 2025
Anthony told me that we were going to be joined by someone they’d met at the burn the week before, a young guy known to them only by his mushrooming nickname: Paulie Porcini.
From "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan
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.
