Watercress

//ˈwɔtəɹkɹɛs// noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A perennial European herb, Nasturtium officinale, that grows in freshwater streams; used in salads and as a garnish. countable, uncountable

    "A spring wells up in the centre of the village, and watercress beds lie beside the stream running alongside the main street."

  2. 2
    cresses that grow in clear ponds and streams wordnet
  3. 3
    A similar plant, Nasturtium microphyllum. countable, uncountable
  4. 4
    any of several water-loving cresses wordnet
Adjective
  1. 1
    of a moderate yellow-green color that is greener and deeper than moss green and yellower and darker than pea green wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
cress greencress greencresson

Example

More examples

"Watercress is a common ingredient in vegetable soups."

Etymology

From Middle English water cresse, water-kresse, watercrasse, water cars, equivalent to water + cress. Cognate with West Frisian waterkers (“watercress”), Dutch waterkers (“watercress”), Swedish vattenkrasse (“watercress”).

Related phrases

fool's watercressnasturtium officinale

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.