Artichoke

2 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Artichoke \Ar"ti*choke\, n. [It. articiocco, perh. corrupted fr.
     the same word as carciofo; cf. older spellings archiciocco,
     archicioffo, carciocco, and Sp. alcachofa, Pg. alcachofra;
     prob. fr. Ar. al-harshaf, al-kharsh[=u]f.] (Bot.)
     1. The {Cynara scolymus}, a plant somewhat resembling a
        thistle, with a dilated, imbricated, and prickly


        involucre. The head (to which the name is also applied) is
        composed of numerous oval scales, inclosing the florets,
        sitting on a broad receptacle, which, with the fleshy base
        of the scales, is much esteemed as an article of food.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. See {Jerusalem artichoke}.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  artichoke
       n 1: Mediterranean thistlelike plant widely cultivated for its
            large edible flower head [syn: {globe artichoke}, {artichoke
            plant}, {Cynara scolymus}]
       2: a thistle-like flower head with edible fleshy leaves and
          heart [syn: {globe artichoke}]