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purslane

[ purs-leyn, -lin ]
/ ˈpɜrs leɪn, -lɪn /

noun

a low, trailing plant, Portulaca oleracea, having yellow flowers, used as a salad plant and potherb.Compare purslane family.
any other plant of the purslane family.

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Origin of purslane

1350–1400; Middle English purcelan(e) <Middle French porcelaine<Late Latin porcillāgin- (stem of porcillāgō), for Latin porcillāca, variant of portulācaportulaca

Words nearby purslane

purser, purse seine, purse-string instrument, purse strings, purse-string suture, purslane, purslane family, pursuance, pursuant, pursue, pursuer
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for purslane

British Dictionary definitions for purslane

purslane
/ (ˈpɜːslɪn, -leɪn) /

noun

a weedy portulacaceous plant, Portulaca oleracea, with small yellow flowers and fleshy leaves, which are used in salads and as a potherb
any of various similar or related plants, such as sea purslane and water purslane

Word Origin for purslane

C14 purcelane, from Old French porcelaine, from Late Latin porcillāgō, from Latin porcillāca, variant of portulāca
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