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onion - 6 dictionary results
on⋅ion
[uhn-yuh
n] 
–noun
| 1. | a plant, Allium cepa, of the amaryllis family, having an edible, succulent, pungent bulb. |
| 2. | any of certain similar plants. |
| 3. | the bulb of the onion plant. |
| 4. | the flavor or odor of this bulb. |
| 5. | Slang. a person: He's a tough onion. |
–adjective
—Idiom| 6. | containing or cooked with onions: onion soup. |
| 7. | of, pertaining to, or resembling an onion. |
| 8. | know one's onions, Slang. to know one's subject or business thoroughly; be capable or proficient. |
Origin:
1325–75; ME onyon < OF oignon < L ūniōn- (s. of ūniō) a unity, large pearl, onion; see union
1325–75; ME onyon < OF oignon < L ūniōn- (s. of ūniō) a unity, large pearl, onion; see union
Related forms:
on⋅ion⋅like, adjective
on⋅ion⋅y, 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 onion
| on·ion (ŭn'yən) n.
[Middle English oinyon, from Old French oignon, from Latin uniō, uniōn-.] |
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
Onion
On"ion\, n. [F. ognon, fr. L. unio oneness, unity, a single large pearl, an onion. See One, Union.] (Bot.) A liliaceous plant of the genus Allium (A. cepa), having a strong-flavored bulb and long hollow leaves; also, its bulbous root, much used as an article of food. The name is often extended to other species of the genus. Onion fish (Zo["o]l.), the grenadier. Onion fly (Zo["o]l.) a dipterous insect whose larva feeds upon the onion; especially, Anthomyia ceparum and Ortalis flexa. Welsh onion. (Bot.) See Cibol. Wild onion (Bot.), a name given to several species of the genus Allium.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : onion
Spanish:
cebolla,
German:
die Zwiebel,
Japanese:
玉ねぎ
onion
1130, from Anglo-Fr. union, from O.Fr. oignon (formerly also oingnon), from L. unionem (nom. unio), colloquial rustic Roman for "a kind of onion," also "pearl," lit. "one, unity;" sense connection is the successive layers of an onion, in contrast with garlic or cloves. O.E. had ynne (in ynne-leac), from the same L. source, which also produced Ir. inniun, Welsh wynwyn and similar words in Gmc. In Du., the ending in -n was mistaken for a plural inflection and new sing. ui formed. The usual I.E. name is represented by Gk. kromion, Ir. crem, Welsh craf, O.E. hramsa, Lith. kremuse. The usual L. word was cepa, a loan from an unknown language; cf. O.Fr. cive, O.E. cipe, and, via L.L. dim. cepulla, It. cipolla, Sp. cebolla, Pol. cebula. Ger zweibel also is from this source, but altered by folk etymology in O.H.G. (zwibolla) from words for "two" and "ball." Onion ring is attested from 1952. Onions, the surname, is attested from 1159 (Ennian), from O.Wesh Enniaun, ult. from L. Annianus, which was associated with Welsh einion "anvil."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Onion
The Israelites in the wilderness longed for the "onions and garlick of Egypt" (Num. 11:5). This was the _betsel_ of the Hebrews, the Allium cepe of botanists, of which it is said that there are some thirty or forty species now growing in Palestine. The onion is "the 'undivided' leek, _unio_, _unus_, one."
Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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onion
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Copyright © 2009, Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.
