Herbal
/ˈhɜːr.bəl/noun
Relating to herbs or plants used for medicine, cooking, or flavoring.
Did you know?Herbal comes from the same ancient root that gave Latin herba, and that plant-root also fed words across Europe for grass, greenery, and the raw material of old medicine.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*gʰer-
“to grow green, sprout”
Latin
Latin
herba
“grass, herb, green plant”
Late Latin
Latin
herbalis
“of herbs”
Old French
OF
herbal
“of herbs; a book about herbs”
Middle English
English
herbal
“relating to herbs; a collection of descriptions of herbs”
Modern English
English
herbal
“relating to herbs or herbal medicine”