string bean
Definition
- Noun:
- A type of green bean with a long, slender pod and fibrous strings running along its sides that are typically removed before cooking. This term specifically refers to the edible pod of certain bean cultivars characterized by this fibrous "string."
Examples of Usage
- Noun:
- She prepared a salad with fresh string beans. (This describes using the vegetable as an ingredient.)
- The old variety of string bean required careful preparation to remove the tough string. (This highlights the defining characteristic of the vegetable.)
- He grows both string beans and stringless beans in his garden. (This contrasts it with a modern, stringless variety.)
Advanced Usage
- The term "string bean" can be used metaphorically to describe a very tall, thin person, though this is informal and potentially impolite.
- The basketball player was a real string bean when he was a teenager.
Variants and Related Words
- Stringless bean (n): A modern cultivar of green bean bred to lack the fibrous string, making preparation easier.
- Green bean (n): A broader category that includes both string beans and stringless beans; often used interchangeably in modern contexts where the string is no longer common.
- Snap bean (n): Another general term for green beans, referring to the crisp sound they make when broken.
Synonyms
- Green bean (when referring to the general vegetable, though technically a broader term)
- Snap bean
Related Phrases
- To be a string bean: An informal idiomatic phrase meaning to be very tall and slender.
- He shot up in height and became a real string bean over the summer.
Noun
-
green beans with strings that must be removed
