winged bean
Americannoun
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a tropical Asian vine, Psophocarpus tetragonolobus, of the legume family, of which the pods, seeds, leaves, and flowers are edible and nutritious.
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the pod of this plant, having four flangelike longitudinal extensions.
Etymology
Origin of winged bean
First recorded in 1905–10
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.
In certain parts of Asia, such as Burma, Sumatra and New Guinea, the winged bean is old potatoes.
From Time Magazine Archive
As a legume, the winged bean converts its own nitrogen from the atmosphere, thanks to a happy symbiosis with guest Rhizobium bacteria in the plant's potato-like tubers.
From Time Magazine Archive
"It's a veritable backyard supermarket," exults Vietmeyer, who has probably done as much as anyone to drum up the new enthusiasm for the winged bean.
From Time Magazine Archive
If the winged bean is such a bountiful miracle, why was it so long neglected outside its native habitat?
From Time Magazine Archive
The winged bean does more than just fill stomachs.
From Time Magazine Archive
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.
