agave, century plant, American aloe
(noun) tropical American plants with basal rosettes of fibrous sword-shaped leaves and flowers in tall spikes; some cultivated for ornament or for fiber
Source: WordNet® 3.1
agave (plural agaves)
A plant of the genus Agave, which includes the maguey or century plant (Agave americana), which produces a gigantic flower stem at maturity.
Source: Wiktionary
A*ga"ve, n. Etym: [L. Agave, prop. name, fr. Gr. (bot.)
Definition: A genus of plants (order Amaryllidaceæ) of which the chief species is the maguey or century plant (A. Americana), wrongly called Aloe. It is from ten to seventy years, according to climate, in attaining maturity, when it produces a gigantic flower stem, sometimes forty feet in height, and perishes. The fermented juice is the pulque of the Mexicans; distilled, it yields mescal. A strong thread and a tough paper are made from the leaves, and the wood has many uses.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
22 February 2025
(noun) the use of closed-class words instead of inflections: e.g., ‘the father of the bride’ instead of ‘the bride’s father’
Contrary to popular belief, coffee beans are not technically beans. They are referred to as such because of their resemblance to legumes. A coffee bean is a seed of the Coffea plant and the source for coffee. It is the pit inside the red or purple fruit, often referred to as a cherry. Just like ordinary cherries, the coffee fruit is also a so-called stone fruit.
