poppy seed

American  

noun

• poppy seeds
  plural

1. seed of the poppy plant, used as an ingredient or topping for breads, rolls, cakes, and cookies.

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poppy seed British  

noun

1. the small grey seeds of one type of poppy flower, used esp on loaves and as a cake filling

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• poppy seeds
  plural

Etymology

Origin of poppy seed

late Middle English word dating back to 1375–1425

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

poppy seed

These included dairy, ⁠wheat, ⁠tree nuts, ⁠coconut, seafood, red fish, ⁠pulses and beans, kiwi, sesame, ⁠dogs, cats, horse, ⁠pollen, flaxseed, ⁠chia, poppy seed, buckwheat, millet, peas, chestnut, quinoa, rye, oats and ⁠pumpkin.

From BBC ● Jun. 13, 2026

There’s the Ukrainian poppy seed cake makivnyk, the Middle Eastern hot chocolate sahlep, the Spanish nougat turrón and the Chinese candied fruit tanghulu, among others.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 16, 2025

The LED recording light is about the size of a poppy seed, so it’s on you to tell people you’re wearing a wire.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 12, 2025

The couple now run the dessert shop Coping Cookies on Capitol Hill, with seasonable flavors such as lemon-boysenberry, Earl Grey and lemon poppy seed.

From Seattle Times ● Apr. 22, 2023

Mother talked of the delicious poppy seed soup and cranberry pudding.

From "Between Shades of Gray" by Ruta Sepetys