rhubarb
Rhubarb (noun) means a garden plant with long, tart red or green stalks that are cooked and eaten, usually sweetened, while its leaves are poisonous. Example: “She baked a rhubarb crumble with a scoop of custard on top.”
How to use rhubarb
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA tart plant used in cooking (its stalks, not leaves), or informally, a noisy dispute.
Only the stalks are eaten — the leaves are toxic and should never be cooked or eaten.
Word forms
rhubarbed past tense, rhubarbed past tense, rhubarb plural, rhubarbs plural, rhubarbs plural, rhubarbs singular, rhubarbs singular
Fill the gap
Can you complete this real example?
She baked a _____ crumble with a scoop of custard on top.
Etymology
From Old French reubarbe, ultimately from Greek rheon barbarikon, literally "foreign rhubarb" — because the plant was imported from outside the Greek and Roman world.
Frequently asked questions
What does “rhubarb” mean?
The word “rhubarb” means a garden plant with long, tart red or green stalks that are cooked and eaten, usually sweetened, while its leaves are poisonous. In plain terms, a tart plant used in cooking (its stalks, not leaves), or informally, a noisy dispute.
How do you pronounce “rhubarb”?
“Rhubarb” is pronounced ROO-bahb (/ˈɹuˌbɑɹb/ in IPA).
How do you use “rhubarb” in a sentence?
Here is “rhubarb” used in a sentence: “She baked a rhubarb crumble with a scoop of custard on top.”
What part of speech is “rhubarb”?
“Rhubarb” is a noun.
Where does the word “rhubarb” come from?
The word “rhubarb” comes from Old French. From Old French reubarbe, ultimately from Greek rheon barbarikon, literally "foreign rhubarb" — because the plant was imported from outside the Greek and Roman world.
How many meanings does “rhubarb” have?
“Rhubarb” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: a garden plant with long, tart red or green stalks that are cooked and eaten, usually sweetened, while its leaves are poisonous.
Featured in
Vocabulary lists that include rhubarb: