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lucerne

lu·cerne

UK/luːˈsɜːn/ US/ˈlusɜrn/ rare archaic

noun

1.

important European leguminous forage plant with trifoliate leaves and blue-violet flowers grown widely as a pasture and hay crop

Synonyms

Origin

From French Lucerne, known in Swiss German as Lozärn, from Medieval Latin Lucernense, Luciaria, Lucerna, of uncertain origin, but possibly from Latin lūcĭus (“pike”) with the suffix -ārĭa, as in "place with a large number of pike." Popular etymology associated it with lucerna (“lantern”), though both words are related to lux (“light”). Also compare Leodegar, Burgundian bishop of Autun.

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.