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ar·ti·choke

(ärtĭ-chōk′)

a. A Mediterranean thistlelike plant (Cynara scolymus) in the composite family, having pinnately divided leaves and large discoid heads of bluish flowers.

b. The edible, immature flower head of this plant. Also called globe artichoke.

2. The Jerusalem artichoke.

[Northern Italian dialectal articiocco, from Old Spanish alcarchofa, from Arabic al-ḫaršuf : al-, the + ḫuršūf, ḫaršūf, artichoke (perhaps from Middle Persian *xār-čōb, literally, thorn-stick : xār, thorn; akin to Sanskrit khara-, rough, sharp + čōb, stick).]

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artichoke

Cynara scolymus

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

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Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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