greens en · NOUN · etymology 1
Pronunciation
- /ɡɹiːnz/
- (US) audio
- grēnz
Etymology
From Middle English grenes, equivalent to green + -s. Compare Saterland Frisian Gräinieten (“vegetable”), West Frisian grienten (“vegetables, greens”), Dutch groenten (“vegetables, greens”), German Low German Gröönten (“vegetables, greens”), Danish grøntsager (“vegetables”), Swedish grönsaker (“vegetables”).
Meanings
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(plural, plural-only) Leaves and leaf-like parts of edible plants when eaten as vegetables or in salads.
Another option is to wash spinach and other leafy greens thoroughly in running water before eating them.
2021 July 1, Gregory McNamee, “Does spinach make you strong? Ask Popeye – and science”, in CNN, archived from the original on 11 Jun 2025:Throughout the winter and spring, a variety of little greens shoot up that are the staples of a harvested salad.
2017, Mia Wasilevich, Ugly Little Greens: Gourmet Dishes Crafted From Foraged Ingredients, →ISBN:collard greens
So, here's the deal: greens should be an essential part of every meal. And by greens I mean leafy greens, leaves on plants (such as tomato leaves), and herbs.
2017, Jenn Louis, Kathleen Squires, The Book of Greens: A Cook's Compendium, →ISBN, page 2:salad greens
Collard Greens are my favorite greens!
2011, Lorraine Grant, Everyday Comfort Foods with Family and Friends, page 52:If you're a beginning gardener and have never grown a vegetable in your life before, try greens. You'll find no easier group of vegetables to grow than greens.
2009, Charlie Nardozzi, Vegetable Gardening For Dummies, →ISBN, page 137:
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(form-of, plural) plural of green
form of green
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(plural, plural-only) Green vegetables; edible plants or plant parts that contain chlorophyll.
starches, meats, and greens
Seaweed is delicious, and now that you've fallen in love with these ocean greens, you likely can't wait to polish off multiple bowlfuls each day.
2016, Lisette Kreischer, Marcel Schuttelaar, Ocean Greens: Explore the World of Edible Seaweed and Sea Vegetables., →ISBN:Greens are the most basic and prevalent life form on the planet. In the waters, the greens are represented in large and microscopic plant life such as phytoplankton, which grow abundantly in oceans around the world and are the foundation of the marine food chain. On land, the greens can be represented in many green plants and tree foliage with access to sunlight and water. They all contain the pigment chlorophyll for photosynthesis.
2006, Ron Carter, Just Soul Food II-Greens/Holy Spirit's Love-Christ's Cross, →ISBN, page 102:We know we should eat more greens, but we so easily get stuck in a rut and just steam some broccoli or green beans, time and time again
2017, Zita Steyn, Eat More Greens: The Most Inventive Recipes to Help You Eat More Greens, →ISBN:91% of Americans don't eat the recommended daily intake of green vegetables. This is a combination of the challenge of time, budget and the perception most of us picked up as kids that greens don't taste good.
2017, Dawn Russell, The 8Greens Cookbook: The Simple Way to Get Your Greens, →ISBN:
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(plural, plural-only) Leafy plants that are used for decoration.
Yuletide greens
Tip greens - the new growth at the ends of branches - are often harvested either for the wholesale or retail market, or for one's own processing.
1989, Lewis Hill, Christmas Trees: Growing and Selling Trees, Wreaths, and Greens, →ISBN:In phase II, we carried out the field portion of the study during two consecutive weeks in April 2002, a time that coincided with the end of the spring floral greens havesting season for that year.
2003, Kathryn A. Lynch, Rebecca J. McLain, Access, Labor, and Wild Floral Greens Management in Western Washington's Forests, →ISBN, page 10:"We're going for Christmas greens and Dad's going to cut our tree from away up on the hillside," Toad told him, "and," he added, "we're going to take one of the horses with us to drag it home.
2007, Alice Hale Burnett, Christmas Holidays at Merryvale: The Merryvale Boys, →ISBN:
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(plural, plural-only) The green dress uniform of the United States Marine Corps.
Some years ago, moths ruined my greens, and my son, a career Army man, sensed my loss.
1991, The Leatherneck, volume 74:
Coordinates
khaki · garland · blues · camo · fatigues · wreath
Deriveds
beet greens · leafy greens · dandelion greens · mess of greens · Utica greens · warrigal greens · mustard greens · spring greens · salad greens · Botany Bay greens · turnip greens · collard greens
Translations (58)
nb bladgrønt (leaves of certain edible green plants) · vi rau (leaves of certain edible green plants) · it verdura (leaves of certain edible green plants) · ru о́вощи (any vegetable eaten by humans, regardless of colour) · ny masamba (leaves of certain edible green plants) · pt verdura (leaves of certain edible green plants) · tr yeşillik (leaves of certain edible green plants) · crh yeşillik (leaves of certain edible green plants) · el λαχανικά (any vegetable eaten by humans, regardless of colour) · ta கீரை (leaves of certain edible green plants) · it erbaggi (leaves of certain edible green plants) · nb bladsalat (leaves of certain edible green plants) · ja 菜っ葉 (leaves of certain edible green plants) · sv grönsaker (leaves of certain edible green plants) · fi lehtivihannekset (leaves of certain edible green plants) · rsk желєнїдло (leaves of certain edible green plants) · nl bladgroente (leaves of certain edible green plants) · hy բանջար (any vegetable eaten by humans, regardless of colour) · uk зелени́на (leaves of certain edible green plants) · it erbe (leaves of certain edible green plants) · ko 푸성귀 (leaves of certain edible green plants) · nb grønt (leaves of certain edible green plants) · ka მწვანილი (leaves of certain edible green plants) · gl verdura (leaves of certain edible green plants) · la holus (any vegetable eaten by humans, regardless of colour) · sv grönt uncountable (leaves of certain edible green plants) · el λαχανικά (leaves of certain edible green plants) · ny masamba (any vegetable eaten by humans, regardless of colour) · ru зе́лень (leaves of certain edible green plants) · pl zielenina (leaves of certain edible green plants) · fr légumes verts (leaves of certain edible green plants) · ta கீரை (any vegetable eaten by humans, regardless of colour) · cmn 青菜 (leaves of certain edible green plants) · cmn 菜 (leaves of certain edible green plants) · ha ganye (leaves of certain edible green plants) · gl verdura (any vegetable eaten by humans, regardless of colour) · nl groenten (any vegetable eaten by humans, regardless of colour) · be зе́лень (leaves of certain edible green plants) · mk зелје (leaves of certain edible green plants) · el χόρτα (leaves of certain edible green plants) · mi korare (leaves of certain edible green plants) · af groente (leaves of certain edible green plants) · uk зе́лень (leaves of certain edible green plants) · es verduras (leaves of certain edible green plants) · az göyərti (leaves of certain edible green plants) · mk зарзават (any vegetable eaten by humans, regardless of colour) · fi vihannekset (leaves of certain edible green plants) · it cime (leaves of certain edible green plants) · eo legomoj (leaves of certain edible green plants) · nl groenten (leaves of certain edible green plants) · tr yeşillik (any vegetable eaten by humans, regardless of colour) · be зеляні́на (leaves of certain edible green plants) · hy բանջար (leaves of certain edible green plants) · kmr pincar (leaves of certain edible green plants) · hy կանաչեղեն (leaves of certain edible green plants) · sv gröna (leaves of certain edible green plants) · de Blattgemüse (leaves of certain edible green plants) · ja 菜 (leaves of certain edible green plants)