Cauli
/ˈkɔːli/noun
An informal shortening of cauliflower, especially in British, Australian, and New Zealand English.
Did you know?The Latin ancestor caulis meant both “stalk” and “cabbage,” revealing that ancient plant names often focused on the visible structure of the plant rather than its modern culinary identity.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*kawel-
“Stalk, stem, or cabbage-like plant; a reconstructed ancestral root”
Ancient Greek
Greek
kaûlos
“Stem or stalk”
Classical Latin
Latin
caulis
“Stalk, stem, or cabbage”
Old French
Old French
col
“Cabbage; derived from Latin caulis”
16th Century
English
cauliflower
“A cabbage plant producing a compact edible flower head”
20th Century
English
cauli
“Informal clipped form of cauliflower”