fennel Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun any of several aromatic herbs having edible seeds and leaves and stems
  2. noun aromatic bulbous stem base eaten cooked or raw in salads
    Florence fennel; finocchio.
  3. noun leaves used for seasoning
    common fennel.
  4. noun fennel seeds are ground and used as a spice or as an ingredient of a spice mixture

WordNet

Fen"nel noun
Etymology
AS. fenol, finol, from L. feniculum, faeniculum, dim. of fenum, faenum, hay: cf. F. fenouil. Cf. Fenugreek. Finochio.
Definitions
  1. (Bot.) A perennial plant of the genus Fæniculum (F.vulgare), having very finely divided leaves. It is cultivated in gardens for the agreeable aromatic flavor of its seeds.
    Smell of sweetest fennel. Milton.
    A sprig of fennel was in fact the theological smelling bottle of the tender sex. S. G. Goodrich.

Webster 1913