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Cichorium endivia

Cichorium endivia

6.8
A leafy green plant with curly or flat leaves used in salads
  • noun
  • /ˌsɪkəˈrɔːriəm ɛnˈdɪviə/
translation icon : endibia
  • Many gourmet salads feature Cichorium endivia for its crisp texture and slightly bitter flavor.

Examples

  • The chef prefers to use Cichorium endivia because its curly leaves hold dressing well.

  • Farmers harvest Cichorium endivia both for local markets and restaurant supply.

  • I love adding Cichorium endivia to my salads.

  • Have you tried Cichorium endivia in your meals?

  • Many gourmet salads feature Cichorium endivia for its crisp texture and slightly bitter flavor.

  • The chef prefers to use Cichorium endivia because its curly leaves hold dressing well.

  • Farmers harvest Cichorium endivia both for local markets and restaurant supply.

Synonyms

endive
vsCichorium endivia
7 6.1

A leafy green with crisp, slightly bitter leaves used in salads

focuses on a variety of leaf shapes rather than leaf taste
witloof
vsCichorium endivia
  • UK
9.9

A pale leafy vegetable often eaten in salads with a slightly bitter taste

grows green leaves that are curly serrated or broad flat

Surface Forms

Morphology

Cichorium + endivia

The name is compositionally a botanical binomial (genus Cichorium + species endivia), so a learner who knows the constituents could infer it denotes a plant of the Cichorium genus. However the specific culinary/leaf characteristics and the Latin species epithet are specialist knowledge (and 'endivia' is not a common English lemma), so the full meaning is not fully predictable for an average B1 learner.

Etymology

Cichorium endivia may come from old Greek and Latin words for the same salad plant: the parts Cichorium and endivia were used for the bitter leafy plant people call 'endive' or 'chicory' today. That's why the scientific name points to the edible, often curly leaves we eat in salads.