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Glite Dictionary
Dioscoreaceae

Dioscoreaceae

9.9
A family of flowering plants like yams that have edible tubers
  • noun
  • /ˌdaɪəskɔˈriːəˌsiː/
  • Specialized
translation icon : Dioscoreaceae
  • The Dioscoreaceae family includes many species that produce edible tubers known as yams.

Examples

  • Many traditional dishes around the world feature yams from the Dioscoreaceae family as a staple ingredient.

  • Botanists categorize Dioscoreaceae as an important family in the study of flowering plants.

  • YAM FAMILY (Dioscoreaceae)

    Blog text (1)

Synonyms

yam family
vsDioscoreaceae
  • Specialized
6.7

A group of flowering plants that includes yams and other plants with starchy underground tubers

is the Latin botanical name used in scientific classification

Surface Forms

Dioscoreaceae singular
Dioscoreaceas plural

Morphology

Dioscoreaceae = Dioscorea (opaque) = Dioscorea + aceae

The form is a specialist botanical family name (genus + -aceae); the suffix is not productive for general learners so the meaning 'yam family' is not derivable by an average B1 learner.

Etymology

Dioscoreaceae comes from the plant name Dioscorea, which was named for the ancient Greek doctor Dioscorides who wrote about plants. The ending -aceae means a 'family' of plants, so Dioscoreaceae is the plant family that includes 'yams' and their close relatives.