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Glite Dictionary
Dioscorea trifida

Dioscorea trifida

9.9
A tropical American yam plant with small yellow roots that people eat
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : Dioscorea trifida
  • Farmers in the region often grow Dioscorea trifida because its tubers are highly valued in local cuisine.

Examples

  • The yellow flesh of Dioscorea trifida becomes creamy when cooked and is used in stews.

  • Many farmers cultivate Dioscorea trifida for its edible tubers.

  • Researchers are studying Dioscorea trifida for its potential nutritional benefits.

  • The Dioscorea trifida is known for its nutritious tubers.

  • Farmers in the region often grow Dioscorea trifida because its tubers are highly valued in local cuisine.

  • The yellow flesh of Dioscorea trifida becomes creamy when cooked and is used in stews.

  • Many farmers cultivate Dioscorea trifida for its edible tubers.

Synonyms

cush-cush
vsDioscorea trifida
  • US
9.9

A small yellow yam that farmers grow in tropical America for food

is the scientific name for the same plant

Surface Forms

Dioscorea trifida singular
Dioscorea trifidas plural

Morphology

Dioscorea + trifida

This is a taxonomic binomial formed from a genus name ('Dioscorea' — a tropical genus of starchy, tuberous yams) plus a species epithet; that composition transparently denotes a particular kind of Dioscorea (i.e., a species of yam). Even if 'trifida' is a Latin epithet, the overall meaning as a specific yam plant with edible tubers is directly inferable from the genus definition, so a learner who knows the constituents would understand it denotes that yam species.

Etymology

Dioscorea trifida comes from the name of an old Greek doctor, Dioscorides (seen in Dioscorea) and the Latin word trifida, which means 'split into three'. The 'split into three' likely points to the plant's leaves or tubers that look like three parts, and that is why the name fits this tropical yam today.