vegetale

vegetable

noun veh-jeh-TAH-leh Rare

Origin: Medieval Latin vegetalis, from vegetare 'to enliven.'

Also means

plant

Usage Note

Vegetale is masculine (i vegetali) and covers both vegetables as food and plants as a biological category. As an adjective it means 'plant-based' (olio vegetale, vegetable oil; regno vegetale, plant kingdom). For specifically edible vegetables in everyday speech, Italians also use la verdura (greens/vegetables).

Examples

"Preferisco mangiare vegetali freschi."

Natural Translation

I prefer to eat fresh vegetables.

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