Definition

1. Noun:
   • A plant with pungent leaves: "cress" refers to any of various plants in the family Brassicaceae (Cruciferae) that have edible leaves with a sharp, peppery, or tangy taste.
   • The leaves as food: The word also denotes the pungent leaves themselves, which are commonly used in salads, sandwiches, and as garnishes.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:
  • She added some fresh cress to her salad for extra flavor.
  • Watercress is a common type of cress that grows in streams.
  • The sandwich was garnished with a sprig of garden cress.

Advanced Usage

• "cress" as a modifier: The word can be used attributively to describe other nouns.
  • The cress seeds sprouted quickly on the damp paper towel.
  • We enjoyed a cress soup made from the garden harvest.

Variants and Related Words

• Watercress (n): A specific, fast-growing aquatic or semi-aquatic cress ().
• Garden cress (n): A common cress () often used in salads and for sprouts.
• Land cress (n): A cress () with a similar taste to watercress but grown on dry land.
• Cressy (adj, rare): Resembling or tasting of cress.

Synonyms

• Peppergrass: A common name for some plants in the cress family.
• Nasturtium (in a culinary, not botanical, sense): Often used interchangeably with "cress," especially for watercress.

Related Phrases

• "mustard and cress": A traditional mixture of mustard plant seedlings and garden cress seedlings, used as a salad or garnish.
  • The classic egg sandwich was served with mustard and cress.

Noun

1. pungent leaves of any of numerous cruciferous herbs
2. any of various plants of the family Cruciferae with edible leaves that have a pungent taste