n.
Pronunciation: ' b ē t
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English bete, from Old English b ē te, from Latin beta
Date: before 12th century
: a biennial garden plant ( Beta vulgaris ) of the goosefoot family that includes several cultivars (as Swiss chard and sugar beet) and that has thick edible leaves with long petioles and often swollen purplish-red roots also : its root used especially as a vegetable, as a source of sugar, or for forage