vegetable
Americannoun
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any plant whose fruit, seeds, roots, tubers, bulbs, stems, leaves, or flower parts are used as food, as the tomato, bean, beet, potato, onion, asparagus, spinach, or cauliflower.
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the edible part of such a plant, as the tuber of the potato.
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any member of the plant kingdom; plant.
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Informal. a person who is so severely impaired mentally or physically as to be largely incapable of conscious responses or activity.
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a dull, spiritless, and uninteresting person.
adjective
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of, consisting of, or made from edible vegetables.
a vegetable diet.
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of, relating to, or characteristic of plants.
the vegetable kingdom.
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derived from plants.
vegetable fiber; vegetable oils.
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consisting of, comprising, or containing the substance or remains of plants.
vegetable matter; a vegetable organism.
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of the nature of or resembling a plant.
the vegetable forms of Art Nouveau ornament.
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inactive; inert; dull; uneventful.
a vegetable existence.
noun
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any of various herbaceous plants having parts that are used as food, such as peas, beans, cabbage, potatoes, cauliflower, and onions
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informal a person who has lost control of his mental faculties, limbs, etc, as from an injury, mental disease, etc
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a dull inactive person
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( as modifier )
a vegetable life
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(modifier) consisting of or made from edible vegetables
a vegetable diet
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(modifier) of, relating to, characteristic of, derived from, or consisting of plants or plant material
vegetable oils
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rare any member of the plant kingdom
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A plant that is cultivated for an edible part, such as the leaf of spinach, the root of the carrot, or the stem of celery.
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An edible part of one of these plants.
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See Note at fruit
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of vegetable
1350–1400; Middle English (adjective) < Late Latin vegetābilis “able to live and grow,” equivalent to vegetā(re) “to quicken” ( see vegetate) + -bilis -ble
Explanation
A vegetable is an edible part of a plant, like a stalk of broccoli, a carrot, or a spinach leaf. With a few exceptions (think French fries), vegetables are just about the healthiest food you can eat. Culinary purists will tell you that some things you think of as vegetables, like tomatoes and zucchinis, aren't vegetables at all — they're fruits, because they have seeds. In general, though, it's fine to refer to the parts of plants used for food as vegetables. The word's original meaning was simply "any plant," and soon it came to mean "plant cultivated for food." Since 1921, it's also been slang for "person leading a monotonous, inactive life."
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:
The decline in oil prices following the Middle East ceasefire is beginning to push fuel-related prices lower, while the drag on food prices has eased as pork and vegetable prices have broadly stabilized.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 3, 2026
Back in Sundar Nagri, vegetable seller Raja said his rooftop room has been unbearable since May.
From Barron's ● Jun. 26, 2026
Before the fire, her yard was a wonderland of 16 fruit trees, a koi pond and both a vegetable and an herb garden.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2026
Fruit and vegetable prices are 6% higher than they were last year, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data for May.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 11, 2026
I embroidered vegetable stalls with purple eggplants and green melons.
From "Homeless Bird" by Gloria Whelan
Researchers at King's College London have uncovered an unexpected connection between chewing sugary gum after eating nitrate-rich vegetables and a temporary reduction in blood pressure.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 15, 2026
But the public doesn’t have to stop consuming fruits and vegetables, Gohil said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
Health officials have advised the public to thoroughly wash produce, avoid certain fruits like raspberries, and cook vegetables to kill off the pathogen - but they still have not identified its sources.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
It is also compensating customs duties on fresh fruit, vegetables and flowers exported to the EU.
From Barron's ● Jul. 14, 2026
Cat remembered how easily the knife fit into his big hands when he chopped vegetables.
From "Caterpillar Summer" by Gillian McDunn
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.
