Plants valued for their medicinal, savory, or aromatic qualities, typically having green leaves and soft stems. Often used in cooking or traditional medicine.
From Old French erbe, from Latin herba meaning 'grass, green crops'. The 'h' was added in English spelling due to Latin influence but often remains silent in American pronunciation, while British English typically pronounces it.
Many herbs contain the same chemical compounds found in modern pharmaceuticals - aspirin originally came from willow bark, and digitalis from foxglove. Ancient herb gardens were essentially the world's first pharmacies and research laboratories.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.