noun
cauliflower
KOL-ee-flow-uh
noun
1
A vegetable related to cabbage, grown for its dense white head of edible flower buds.
"She roasted the cauliflower with olive oil and garlic."
2
A permanently swollen, deformed ear caused by repeated blunt trauma, common among wrestlers and boxers.
"Years of wrestling left him with cauliflower ear."
How to Use Cauliflower
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA white-headed vegetable in the cabbage family, or the name for a wrestler's characteristic swollen ear.
Common pairings
cauliflower ear
roasted cauliflower
cauliflower rice
Word Forms
cauliflowered past tense, cauliflowers plural, cauliflowers singular
Study it as flashcards or scroll it in Flow — saved to your collection.
Test yourself on “cauliflower”
A quick quiz — meaning, synonyms & usage
→
Fill the Gap
Can you complete this real example?
She roasted the _____ with olive oil and garlic.
Etymology
From an earlier form cole-florye — cole (from Latin caulis, "cabbage stalk") + flower — later respelled to look more Latin.