Purslane
//ˈpɜːslən// noun
noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Any of the family Portulacaceae (order Caryophyllales) of succulent plants. uncountable, usually
"ASPARAGUS, cauliflowers, imperial Sileſia, royal and cabbage lettuces, burnet, purſlain, cucumbers, naſturtian flowers, peaſe and beans ſown in October, artichokes, ſcarlet ſtrawberries, and kidney beans."
- 2 a plant of the family Portulacaceae having fleshy succulent obovate leaves often grown as a potherb or salad herb; a weed in some areas wordnet
- 3 Any of the family Portulacaceae (order Caryophyllales) of succulent plants.; common purslane or summer purslane (Portulaca oleracea), a widely-grown edible plant uncountable, usually
- 4 Any of the family Portulacaceae (order Caryophyllales) of succulent plants.; moss-rose purslane, moss rose (Portulaca grandiflora) uncountable, usually
- 5 Any of similar plants in other families in order Caryophyllales; winter purslane, miner's lettuce (Claytonia perfoliata) uncountable, usually
Show 5 more definitions
- 6 Any of similar plants in other families in order Caryophyllales; pink purslane (Claytonia sibirica) uncountable, usually
- 7 Any of similar plants in other families in order Caryophyllales; sea purslane; Halimione portulacoides uncountable, usually
- 8 Any of similar plants in other families in order Caryophyllales; sea purslane; Honckenya peploides uncountable, usually
- 9 Any of similar plants in other families in order Caryophyllales; shoreline purslane (Sesuvium portulacastrum) uncountable, usually
- 10 Any of similar plants in other families in order Caryophyllales; purslane tree (Portulacaria afra) uncountable, usually
Example
More examples"ASPARAGUS, cauliflowers, imperial Sileſia, royal and cabbage lettuces, burnet, purſlain, cucumbers, naſturtian flowers, peaſe and beans ſown in October, artichokes, ſcarlet ſtrawberries, and kidney beans."
Etymology
From Old French porcelaine, probably an alteration of Latin porcilaca (“purslane”) (related to portulaca (“purslane”)) to assimilate it with porcelaine (“porcelain”).
Related phrases
More for "purslane"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.