legume
noun
le·gume
| \ ˈle-ˌgyüm
, li-ˈgyüm
\
, li-ˈgyüm
\
Definition of legume
1a
: the fruit or seed of plants of the legume family (such as peas or beans) used for food
b
: a vegetable used for food
2
: any of a large family (Leguminosae synonym Fabaceae, the legume family) of dicotyledonous herbs, shrubs, and trees having fruits that are legumes (sense 3) or loments, bearing nodules on the roots that contain nitrogen-fixing bacteria, and including important food and forage plants (such as peas, beans, or clovers)
3
: a dry dehiscent one-celled fruit developed from a simple superior ovary and usually dehiscing into two valves with the seeds attached to the ventral suture : pod
Examples of legume in a Sentence
recipes that include legumes like lentils and chickpeas
Recent Examples on the Web
These health benefits may result from the fact that vegetarian and vegan diets tend to be rich in vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, soy foods, nuts and seeds, and lower in saturated fat. — Darlene Zimmerman, Detroit Free Press, "Black Bean and Corn Enchilada Casserole: Fiber rich and vegetarian," 7 Sep. 2019 Researchers have tended to study such microbial communities—found in animal guts and in nitrogen-fixing nodules on legume roots, for example—in isolation. — Elizabeth Pennisi, Science | AAAS, "No microbiome is an island, unprecedented survey of Hawaiian valley reveals," 28 Aug. 2019 There are different versions of keto, but all ban carb-rich foods — even whole grain breads, legumes, starchy vegetables, and many fruits — and emphasize high-fat foods, like fatty cuts of meat, avocados, and vegetable oil. — Neil Swidey, BostonGlobe.com, "Diet advice changes by the minute. How are we supposed to figure out what to eat?," 20 Aug. 2019 Throughout Palomar there are plantings of hardwoods, succulents, proteas, cycads, pollinator plants, rosebushes, palms, bamboos and legumes. — Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, "Palomar College’s arboretum to reopen with access-for-all trails in September," 11 Aug. 2019 Now, a new San Francisco restaurant is betting on a different legume to ramp up the avocado dip: edamame, the soybeans often found in Japanese restaurants. — Janelle Bitker, SFChronicle.com, "New San Francisco restaurant Northpoint opens with edamame-guacamole," 20 June 2019 Home and away The occupants of Çatalhöyük grew grains and legumes, kept sheep and goats, and hunted wild animals such as bison, deer, elk, boar, and birds. — National Geographic, "This Stone Age settlement took humanity's first steps toward city life," 26 Mar. 2019 The cover crop can be a winter-hardy grain, a legume or a combination of the two. — oregonlive.com, "Pull unsightly weeds as they pop or desired garden plants will suffer," 13 July 2019 When more shelf space is dedicated to legume pasta, people eat more legume pasta. — Alyssa Cronin, Washington Post, "Why America is embracing the widening world of non-wheat pastas," 14 June 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'legume.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for legume
legume
noun
English Language Learners Definition of legume
: a type of plant (such as a pea or a bean plant) with seeds that grow in long cases (called pods)
also
: these seeds eaten as food
See the full definition for legume in the English Language Learners Dictionary
legume
noun
le·gume
| \ ˈle-ˌgyüm
\
\
Kids Definition of legume
: any of a large group of plants (as peas, beans, and clover) with fruits that are pods which split into two parts and root nodules containing bacteria that fix nitrogen
legume
noun
le·gume
| \ ˈleg-ˌyüm
, li-ˈgyüm
\
, li-ˈgyüm
\
Medical Definition of legume
1
: the fruit or seed of leguminous plants (as peas or beans) used for food
2
: any plant of the family Leguminosae
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