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morel

morel

5 8.6
A brown mushroom with a spongy cap full of holes that you can eat
  • noun
  • /ˈmɔːrəl/
translation icon : morilla
  • During our camping trip, we discovered several morels growing near the riverbank.
  • morel mushroom

Examples

  • The three of us filled paper lunch sacks with the tall, striped dwarf caps of fresh morels.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • On a muggy Saturday just after I graduated, Mark took me to the family farm again to hunt for morel mushrooms.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • Yellow morel, black morel, and half-free morel.

    Academic text (2003)
  • So what we do is we saute the onions and morels with olive oil.

  • We picked mushrooms to eat, both in the spring and in the fall: morels, boletus, and others, always depending on my father's expert knowledge.

    Fiction book (1997)
  • The dish was a thin slice of sturgeon garnished with morels.

    Academic text (1990)
  • Allie managed to "scrape together," as she put it, buffalo tortellini and roast potatoes with fennel and morels.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • Well, I picked up the wild rice with the French morel mushrooms... on a bed of radicchio lettuce, and there's a little Dijon dressing on the side.

  • Khombi, dhingri, and guhchi are better known to us as morels, chanterelles, and Agaricus campestris, the common field mushroom from which supermarket mushrooms were derived.

    Academic text (1990)
  • In the spring, I love to forage for morels in the wooded areas near my home.

Synonyms

Morchella
vsmorel
  • Specialized
9.2

A type of edible mushroom with a honeycomb cap used in cooking

is the common name for a single edible honeycomb mushroom
genus Morchella
vsmorel
  • Specialized
9.2

A type of edible mushroom with a honeycomb cap prized for cooking

is the everyday name for one member of that genus
common morel
vsmorel
5.6

A mushroom you can eat with a cap full of holes and a rich taste

is the general term covering any similar edible honeycomb mushroom
Morchella esculenta
vsmorel
  • Specialized
8.0

An edible mushroom with a hollow cap covered in pits and ridges that chefs use in cooking

is the broader label for mushrooms with honeycomb-like caps
black morel
vsmorel
8.4

An edible mushroom with a deeply pitted cap that is grey when young and turns black as it ages

is the wider category regardless of cap colour or ageing
Morchella conica
vsmorel
  • Specialized
9.4

An edible mushroom with a pitted cone-shaped cap attached to its stem, grey when young and black when older

is the general edible honeycomb mushroom not limited to that shape
Morchella angusticeps
vsmorel
  • Specialized
9.9

A mushroom with a cap full of holes attached to the stem, gray when young and turning black with age

is the umbrella term for similar edible honeycomb fungi
Morchella crassipes
vsmorel
  • Specialized
9.9

An edible mushroom with a cone-shaped cap that has deep irregular pits

is the general name for honeycomb mushrooms, not a single species
half-free morel
vsmorel
  • Specialized
9.6

A mushroom with a bumpy, pitted cap attached to the stem about halfway

is the general term covering all attachment types and cap forms
Morchella semilibera
vsmorel
  • Specialized
9.9

A morel mushroom with a ridged, pitted cap attached to the stem about halfway

is the broader edible honeycomb mushroom category beyond that attachment
cup morel
vsmorel
  • Specialized
9.5

A mushroom you can eat with a cup-shaped body and wrinkles inside

is the general label for honeycomb mushrooms, not only cup types
bell morel
vsmorel
9.6

A mushroom with a bell-shaped cap attached only at the top

is the wider name for honeycomb mushrooms independent of cap shape
sponge morel
vsmorel
8.9

An edible mushroom with a cap of pits and ridges used in cooking

is the general term for edible honeycomb fungi regardless of head form
sponge mushroom
vsmorel
7.6

A mushroom you can eat with a soft, sponge-like head covered in pits and ridges

is the broader category for honeycomb mushrooms beyond that texture

Compounds

beefsteak morel
  • Specialized
9.9

A poisonous mushroom with a wrinkled cap that can be deadly if eaten raw or not cooked properly

A mushroom with a bell-shaped cap attached only at the top

An edible mushroom with a deeply pitted cap that is grey when young and turns black as it ages

A brown mushroom that looks like a morel and grows under pines in California and can be poisonous

A mushroom you can eat with a cap full of holes and a rich taste

conic morel
  • Specialized
9.9

A mushroom that has a cone-shaped cap with pits attached to the stem, grey when young and black when old

cup morel
  • Specialized
9.5

A mushroom you can eat with a cup-shaped body and wrinkles inside

early morel
  • Specialized
8.8

A small edible mushroom that appears in early spring with a wrinkled, thimble-shaped cap running down the stem

false morel
  • Specialized
9.2

A poisonous mushroom with a wrinkled honeycomb cap that looks like an edible morel

half-free morel
  • Specialized
9.6

A mushroom with a bumpy, pitted cap attached to the stem about halfway

narrowhead morel
  • Specialized
9.9

A mushroom with a pitted cap joined directly to the stem that darkens from grey to black with age

9.9

A poisonous mushroom with a saddle-shaped dull yellow or brown cap

petty morel
  • Specialized
9.9

A woody plant from southeastern North America to Mexico with strong-smelling roots and clusters of small flowers

thick-footed morel
  • Specialized
9.0

An edible mushroom with a thick stem and a cone-shaped cap with deep uneven holes

An edible mushroom with a cap of pits and ridges used in cooking

Surface Forms

morel singular
morels plural

Etymology

Morel comes from the French word morille, the old name for this same mushroom. The name fits the mushroom's wrinkled, honeycomb-like cap, so morel still means that edible, sponge-capped mushroom prized by cooks.