ENGLISH
REFERENCE

spinach

n. uncountable
A2 Elementary US //ˈspɪnətʃ// UK //spˈɪnɪtʃ// spinach

n. a vegetable with large, dark green leaves that you can eat raw or cooked. It is famous for being very healthy and full of iron.

n. an edible flowering plant in the family Amaranthaceae, native to central and western Asia. Its leaves are consumed as a vegetable either fresh or after being cooked.


SIMPLE

I like to add fresh spinach to my morning smoothies.

CONTEXTUAL

The chef sautéed the spinach with garlic and olive oil to serve as a side dish.

COMPLEX

While raw spinach provides a crisp texture for salads, cooking the leaves significantly reduces their volume and makes certain nutrients more accessible for digestion.

Origin

From Middle English spinach, from Anglo-Norman spinache, from Old French espinoche, from Old Occitan espinarc, from Arabic إِسْفَانَاخ (ʔisfānāḵ), from Classical Persian اسپناخ (ispanāx, ispināx).

Usage

Typically uncountable when referring to the vegetable as food; can be countable when referring to different botanical varieties.

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