vetch

American  

[vech] / vɛtʃ /

noun

1. any of several mostly climbing plants belonging to the genus Vicia, of the legume family, having pinnate leaves ending in tendrils and bearing pealike flowers, especially V. sativa spring vetch, cultivated for forage and soil improvement.

2. any of various allied plants, as Lathyrus sativus, of Europe, cultivated for their edible seeds and for forage.

3. the beanlike seed or fruit of any such plant.

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vetch British  

/ vɛtʃ /

noun

1. any of various climbing leguminous plants of the temperate genus Vicia, esp V. sativa, having pinnate leaves, typically blue or purple flowers, and tendrils on the stems

2. any of various similar and related plants, such as Lathyrus sativus, cultivated in parts of Europe, and the kidney vetch

3. the beanlike fruit of any of these plants

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Other Word Forms

• vetchlike adjective

Etymology

Origin of vetch

1325–75; Middle English ve ( c ) che < Anglo-French; Old French vecce ( French vesce ) < Latin vicia

Example Sentences

That specificity poses a problem: Deerweed and milk vetch are disturbance plants, which means they require some kind of soil disturbance — like fire — to sprout and outgrow the other plants around them.

From Los Angeles Times • May 25, 2023

Another is cover cropping, which involves planting crops such as oats or hairy vetch during the winter so fields never lay bare and exposed.

From Scientific American • May 10, 2023

On the one hand, leguminous cover crops such as cowpeas and vetch add nitrogen to the soil, which microbes can transform into nitrous oxide, a potent greenhouse gas.

From Science Magazine • Aug. 16, 2022

Legumes, such as commonly used crimson clover, Austrian field pea and common vetch, are nitrogen “fixers.”

From Seattle Times • Aug. 24, 2021

I filled a jar with water and put the vetch into it, thinking, Please let this be the right one.

From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly