a purple-flowered plant (Tragopogon porrifolius) of the composite family, with long, white, edible, fleshy roots having an oysterlike flavor; oyster plant
Origin of salsify
French salsifis from Italian sassefrica from uncertain or unknown; perhapssalsify
sal·si·fyWebster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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"salsify." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 09 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/salsify>.
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salsify. (n.d.). Retrieved December 09th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/salsify
salsify
noun
pl. sal·si·fies- A European plant (Tragopogon porrifolius) in the composite family, having grasslike leaves, purple flower heads, and an edible taproot.
- The root of this plant, eaten as a vegetable. Also called In both senses also called oyster plant . Also called vegetable oyster .
Origin of salsify
French salsifis from obsolete Italian salsefica variant ( influenced by Italian salsa sauce ) ( or salso salted, perhaps in reference to the oysterlike flavor of its cooked roots ) of sassefrica from Old Italian akin to Medieval Latin saxifraga (media) salsify perhaps Latin saxifraga maidenhair fern (for unknown reasons, since salsify does not resemble maidenhair fern) ; see saxifrage . media feminine of medium middling, ordinaryTHE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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MLA Style
"salsify." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 09 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/salsify>.
APA Style
salsify. (n.d.). Retrieved December 09th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/salsify
Noun
(usually uncountable, plural salsifies)
- (countable, uncountable) Any of several flowering plants, of the genus Tragopogon, most of which have purple flowers.
- (uncountable) The edible root of these plants.
Origin
French salsifis.
English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"salsify." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 09 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/salsify>.
APA Style
salsify. (n.d.). Retrieved December 09th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/salsify
