# tuber

/ˈtubɝ/ (US) · /tjˈuːbɐ/ (UK) · CEFR C1 · Noun

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/tuber
Updated: 2026-10-16

## Definition

a thick underground part of a plant that stores food for the plant. Potatoes are the most common example.

For teachers: a swollen underground plant stem or root that stores nutrients, enabling perennation and vegetative reproduction. Potatoes, yams and dahlias are canonical examples.

## Examples

- We bake a large tuber with butter for lunch.
- The farmer digs up potato tubers in autumn and stores them in a cool cellar.
- After the first frost kills the leafy tops, the plant survives winter entirely within its tubers, which sprout again when warmth returns.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.