Potato
/pəˈteɪtoʊ/noun
A starchy tuber of the nightshade family, widely cultivated as a food crop.
Did you know?English potato is a blend of Spanish patata and Taíno batata, a real case of two plant names colliding in colonial history before one word took over the other.
Etymological Timeline
Pre-Columbian
Taíno
batata
“Sweet potato”
16th Century
Spanish
patata
“Potato; originally a blend of batata and papa”
16th Century
Spanish
papa
“Potato”
16th Century
English
potato
“The tuberous plant and its edible tuber”
Modern English
English
potato
“A starchy edible tuber and the plant that produces it”