soybean

noun

soy·​bean ˈsȯi-ˌbēn 

variants or chiefly British soya bean

ˈsȯi-ə- 

: a hairy annual Asian legume (Glycine max) widely grown for its oil-rich proteinaceous seeds and for forage and soil improvement

also : its seed

Illustration of soybean

Examples of soybean in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Washington agreed to roll back steep tariffs on Chinese exports in exchange for Beijing cracking down on illicit fentanyl trade, pausing export controls of rare earths and resuming purchases of American soybeans. —Anniek Bao, CNBC, 1 Dec. 2025

The others are milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, peanuts, soybeans and sesame. —Matthew Robinson, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Nov. 2025

Imports already make up a growing share of organic corn and soybeans, too. —Kelly Damewood, Fortune, 25 Nov. 2025

My cousins on the farm must pay for fertilizer in April but won’t have soybeans to sell until October. —Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 23 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1795, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing soybean

• soybean oil

Rhymes for soybean

• agin
• alkene
• allene
• ameen
• amin
• amine
• arene
• athene
• baleen
• beeline
• benzene
• between

Kids Definition

soybean

noun

soy·​bean ˈsȯi-ˈbēn 

-ˌbēn

: a hairy annual Asian plant of the legume family widely grown for its edible seeds rich in oil and proteins, as food for livestock, and for soil improvement

also : its seed

Medical Definition

soybean

noun

soy·​bean ˈsȯi-ˌbēn 

variants also soya bean

: a hairy annual Asian legume (Glycine max) grown for its oil-rich proteinaceous seeds and for forage and soil improvement

also : its seed