plantain 1
/plan"tin, -tn/ , n.
1. a tropical plant, Musa paradisiaca, of the banana family, resembling the banana.
2. its fruit, eaten cooked as a staple food in tropical regions.
[ 1545-55; earlier pla ( n ) tan plá ( n ) tano plantain, also plane tree pla ( n ) tanus, L platanus PLANE 3 ]
plantain 2
/plan"tin, -tn/ , n.
any plant of the genus Plantago, esp. P. major, a weed with large, spreading leaves close to the ground and long, slender spikes of small flowers.
[ 1350-1400; ME plauntein plantein plantagin- (s. of plantago ), deriv. of planta sole of the foot, lit., something flat and spread out, like the broad leaf of the plantain; akin to Gk platýs FLAT 1 ; see PLATY- ]