artichoke

[ ahr-ti-chohk ]
/ ˈɑr tɪˌtʃoʊk /

noun

a tall, thistlelike composite plant, Cynara scolymus, native to the Mediterranean region, of which the numerous scalelike bracts and receptacle of the immature flower head are eaten as a vegetable.
the large, rounded, closed flower head itself.
Jerusalem artichoke.
Also called globe artichoke (for defs 1, 2).

Origin of artichoke

1525–35; < Upper Italian articiocco, variant (by dissimilation) of arciciocco, arcicioffo < *arcarcioffo < Old Spanish alcarchofa < dialectal Arabic al-kharshūf the artichoke

Words nearby artichoke

arthur, king, arthurian, arthus' reaction, arti, artic, artichoke, article, article numbering, article of faith, articled, articles

Example sentences from the Web for artichoke

British Dictionary definitions for artichoke

artichoke
/ (ˈɑːtɪˌtʃəʊk) /

noun

Also called: globe artichoke a thistle-like Eurasian plant, Cynara scolymus, cultivated for its large edible flower head containing many fleshy scalelike bracts: family Asteraceae (composites)
the unopened flower head of this plant, which can be cooked and eaten
See Jerusalem artichoke

Word Origin for artichoke

C16: from Italian articiocco, from Old Spanish alcarchofa, from Arabic al-kharshūf