wild yam

American  

noun

1. any of several uncultivated yams, especially Dioscorea villosa, of the U.S., having a woody, tuberous root.

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Etymology

Origin of wild yam

First recorded in 1835–45

Example Sentences

The botanical activities of these early New Guineans included the collection of wild yams and Pandanus nuts for food4, followed by the independent invention of agriculture5 and then of agroforestry.

From Nature

They harvest wild yams in such a way that they regenerate and multiply, they try to avoid killing pregnant animals, and they consume everything that they take from their environs.

From Scientific American

On the list were papaya, neem, asafoetida, figs, ginger, smartweed, wild yam, pennyroyal, black cohosh and angelica.

From Washington Times

But whether the modern African crop was derived from D. abyssinica, a wild yam that grows in the savanna, or D. praehensilis, which thrives in the wetter rainforests, was not known.

From Science Magazine

The wild animals that formed the backbone of their diet, along with wild yams, could not survive among the monoculture plantations.

From New York Times