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Vetch - 4 dictionary results
vetch
[vech] 
,–noun
| 1. | any of several mostly climbing plants belonging to the genus Vicia, of the legume family, having pinnate leaves ending in tendrils and bearing pealike flowers, esp. V. sativa (spring vetch), cultivated for forage and soil improvement. |
| 2. | any of various allied plants, as Lathyrus sativus, of Europe, cultivated for their edible seeds and for forage. |
| 3. | the beanlike seed or fruit of any such plant. |
Origin:
1325–75; ME ve(c)che < AF; OF vecce (F vesce) < L vicia
1325–75; ME ve(c)che < AF; OF vecce (F vesce) < L vicia
Related forms:
vetchlike, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Link To Vetch
| vetch (věch) n. Any of various herbs of the genus Vicia, having pinnately compound leaves that terminate in tendrils and small, variously colored flowers. [Middle English vetche, from Old North French veche, from Latin vicia; see weik-2 in Indo-European roots.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Vetch
Vetch\, n. [Also fitch; OE. ficche, feche, for veche, OF. veche, vecce, vesche, vesce, F. vesce, fr. L. vicia.] (Bot.) Any leguminous plant of the genus Vicia, some species of which are valuable for fodder. The common species is V. sativa. Note: The name is also applied to many other leguminous plants of different genera; as the chichling vetch, of the genus Lathyrus; the horse vetch, of the genus Hippocrepis; the kidney vetch (Anthyllis vulneraria); the milk vetch, of the genus Astragalus; the licorice vetch, or wild licorice (Abrus precatorius).
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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vetch
c.1374, from O.N.Fr. veche, variant of O.Fr. vece, from L. vicia, which perhaps is related to vincire "to bind" (cf. second element of periwinkle (1)). Du. wikke, Ger. Wicke are loan-words from L. vicia.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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