taro

[ tahr-oh, tair-oh, tar-oh ]

noun

, plural ta·ros.

1. a plant, Colocasia esculenta, of the arum family, cultivated for its edible tuber: widely distributed throughout tropical and subtropical regions, including the Caribbean, the Pacific Islands, Australia, New Zealand, India, and a number of Asian and African nations.
2. the edible tuber of Colocasia esculenta, a widely distributed tropical and subtropical plant of the arum family.

taro

/ ˈtɑːrəʊ /

noun

1. an aroid plant, Colocasia esculenta, cultivated in the tropics for its large edible rootstock
2. the rootstock of this plant

Word History and Origins

Origin of taro¹

Borrowed into English from Polynesian around 1770–80

Word History and Origins

Origin of taro¹

C18: from Tahitian and Māori

Example Sentences

Among the professional bohemians of gentrified Tribeca, Karl Taro Greenfeld spins mesmerizing stories in Triburbia.

From The Daily Beast

"We call it taro," one of the nearest group answered, greatly to our surprise, in perfectly good and clear English.

From Project Gutenberg

A very long time ago there lived in Japan a young fisherman named Urashima Taro.

From Project Gutenberg

Monckton, meanwhile, had made a raid on the native gardens and brought in quite a lot of taro.

From Project Gutenberg

A bushel of candle-nuts, and about the same quantity of taro and patara roots, completed our winter supplies.

From Project Gutenberg

Morton has, among other things, made a couple of nets, and a mortar and pestle for pounding bread-fruit and taro.

From Project Gutenberg