herb /hɜːb $ ɜːrb, hɜːrb/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Date: 1200-1300 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: erbe , from Latin herba 'grass, herb' ]
a small plant that is used to improve the taste of food, or to make medicine ⇨ spice :
Sprinkle the dish with chopped fresh herbs.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ plant a living thing that has leaves and roots and grows in earth, especially one that is smaller than a tree:
Don’t forget to water the plants.
|
Plants grow towards the sun.
|
Botanists examined plant species from around the world.
▪ herb a small plant that is used to improve the taste of food, or to make medicine:
Sprinkle the dish with chopped fresh herbs.
|
medicinal herbs (=used as medicine)
|
The shop sells an interesting range of herbs and spices.
▪ weed a wild plant growing where it is not wanted that prevents crops or garden flowers from growing properly:
She was pulling up weeds in her garden.
|
Herbicides can be used to prevent and control weeds.
▪ bulb a root shaped like a ball that grows into a flower or plant:
She planted hundreds of daffodil bulbs.
▪ shrub a small bush with several woody stems:
flowering shrubs
|
Rosemary is an evergreen shrub.