English Explanatory Dictionary

leek

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A vegetable of variety Allium ampeloprasum, having edible leaves and an onion-like bulb but with a milder flavour than the onion.
  2. Any of several species of Allium, broadly resembling the domesticated plant in appearance in the wild.
name
  1. A town and civil parish with a town council in Staffordshire Moorlands district, Staffordshire, England (OS grid ref SJ9856).
  2. A village and former municipality in Groningen province, Netherlands.
  3. A surname.

Pronunciation

lēk /liːk/ en-us-leak.ogg

Word forms

leek leeks

Etymology

From Middle English leke, leek, lek, from Old English lēac (“a garden herb, leek, onion, garlic”), from Proto-West Germanic *lauk, from Proto-Germanic *lauką, *laukaz (“leek, onion”), from Proto-Indo-European *lewg- (“to bend”). Cognate with Dutch look (“garlic, leek”), German Low German Look (“leek”), German Lauch (“leek, allium”), Danish løg (“onion”), Swedish lök (“onion”), Icelandic laukur (“onion, leek, garlic”). See garlic.

Synonyms

broadleaf wild leek the Cambrian symbol garden leek scallion

Related words

garlic leak Thrips tabaci

Derived words

Asian leek broadleaf wild leek eat the leek garden leek green leek green leek parrot houseleek leek-green leekish leeklike leek moth leek orchid leek rust leeky lily leek meadow leek narrowleaf wild leek Persian leek rose leek sand leek swallow the leek threecorner leek wild leek
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