BUCKWHEAT

Pronunciation (US):

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IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does buckwheat mean? 

• BUCKWHEAT (noun)
  The noun BUCKWHEAT has 2 senses:

1. a member of the genus Fagopyrum; annual Asian plant with clusters of small pinkish white flowers and small edible triangular seeds which are used whole or ground into flour

2. grain ground into flour

  Familiarity information: BUCKWHEAT used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• BUCKWHEAT (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A member of the genus Fagopyrum; annual Asian plant with clusters of small pinkish white flowers and small edible triangular seeds which are used whole or ground into flour

Classified under:

Nouns denoting plants

Synonyms:

buckwheat; Fagopyrum esculentum; Polygonum fagopyrum

Hypernyms ("buckwheat" is a kind of...):

herb; herbaceous plant (a plant lacking a permanent woody stem; many are flowering garden plants or potherbs; some having medicinal properties; some are pests)

Meronyms (parts of "buckwheat"):

buckwheat (grain ground into flour)

Holonyms ("buckwheat" is a member of...):

genus Polygonum; Polygonum (diverse genus of herbs or woody subshrubs of north temperate regions)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Grain ground into flour

Classified under:

Nouns denoting foods and drinks

Hypernyms ("buckwheat" is a kind of...):

cereal; food grain; grain (foodstuff prepared from the starchy grains of cereal grasses)

Holonyms ("buckwheat" is a part of...):

buckwheat; Fagopyrum esculentum; Polygonum fagopyrum (a member of the genus Fagopyrum; annual Asian plant with clusters of small pinkish white flowers and small edible triangular seeds which are used whole or ground into flour)

 Context examples 

"There'll be a check at the post-office, I know, and we'll transmute it into beautiful buckwheat flour, a gallon of maple syrup, and a new pair of overshoes for you."

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)