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wild rice

See more synonyms for wild rice on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a tall aquatic grass, Zizania aquatica, of northeastern North America.
  2. the grain of this plant, used for food.
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Origin of wild rice

First recorded in 1740–50
Also called water oats, water rice.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for wild rice

Historical Examples

  • "Your father has it ready for the wild-rice harvest," said Good Bird.

    Two Indian Children of Long Ago

    Frances Taylor

  • They visited the wild-rice people—Oumalouminik, and the fire-folk—Aweatsewaenrrhonous, and gained more news of the West.

    Strange Stories of the Great River

    Abbie Johnston Grosvenor

  • This little book tells how children lived and played long ago in the wild-rice country.

British Dictionary definitions for wild rice

wild rice

noun
  1. another name for Indian rice
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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