noun
bean
BEEN
noun
1
The edible seed of various pod-bearing plants, or the pod itself, eaten as a vegetable.
"She soaked the dried beans overnight before cooking them."
"We grew runner beans up canes in the garden."
verb
1
Informally, to hit someone with a thrown object, especially on the head.
"He got beaned by a stray baseball in the parking lot."
How to Use Bean
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA common pod vegetable, or slang for hitting someone (usually in the head).
Common mistake
The verb sense ("beaned him with a snowball") is informal — don't use it in formal writing.
Common pairings
baked beans
a can of beans
bean sprouts
Word Forms
beaned past tense, beans singular
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She soaked the dried _____ overnight before cooking them.
Etymology
From Old English bēan, an ancient Germanic word for the bean plant, related to similar words across many European languages.