Asparagus
/əˈspær.ə.ɡəs/noun
A cultivated plant with edible young shoots, eaten as a vegetable.
Did you know?The word ultimately came into English through Latin and Greek from an older Persian source, showing how a single vegetable carried its name across empires and languages.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Persian
Old Persian
*asparag-
“Likely a name for the plant or a related thorny shoot”
Ancient Greek
Greek
aspharagos / asparagos
“Asparagus, the edible shoot”
Classical Latin
Latin
asparagus
“Asparagus, the plant”
Old French
Old French
asperge
“Asparagus”
Middle English
English
asperages / sparage
“Asparagus”
Modern English
English
asparagus
“A cultivated vegetable with edible shoots”