noun
a large family of trees, shrubs, vines, and herbs bearing bean pods; divided for convenience into the subfamilies Caesalpiniaceae; Mimosaceae; Papilionaceae
• Syn: ↑Leguminosae, ↑family Leguminosae, ↑Fabaceae, ↑family Fabaceae, ↑pea family
• Hypernyms: ↑rosid dicot family
• Member Holonyms: ↑Rosales, ↑order Rosales
• Member Meronyms:
↑legume, ↑leguminous plant, ↑Arachis, ↑genus Arachis, ↑Brya, ↑genus Brya, ↑Centrolobium, ↑genus Centrolobium, ↑Coumarouna, ↑genus Coumarouna, ↑Dipteryx, ↑genus Dipteryx, ↑Hymenaea, ↑genus Hymenaea, ↑genus Melilotus, ↑Swainsona, ↑genus Swainsona, ↑Trifolium, ↑genus Trifolium, ↑Mimosaceae, ↑family Mimosaceae, ↑Mimosoideae, ↑subfamily Mimosoideae, ↑Physostigma, ↑genus Physostigma, ↑Caesalpiniaceae, ↑family Caesalpiniaceae, ↑Caesalpinioideae, ↑subfamily Caesalpinioideae, ↑locust tree, ↑locust, ↑Tamarindus, ↑genus Tamarindus, ↑Papilionaceae, ↑family Papilionacea, ↑Papilionoideae, ↑subfamily Papilionoideae, ↑wild pea, ↑bean, ↑bean plant
* * *
the large plant family Leguminosae (or Fabaceae), typified by herbaceous plants, shrubs, trees, and vines having usually compound leaves, clusters of irregular, keeled flowers, and fruit in the form of a pod splitting along both sides, and including beans, peas, acacia, alfalfa, clover, indigo, lentil, mesquite, mimosa, and peanut.
Useful english dictionary. 2012.