lettuce

noun

let·​tuce ˈle-təs 

: any of a genus (Lactuca) of composite plants

especially : a common garden vegetable (L. sativa) whose succulent leaves are used especially in salads

Examples of lettuce in a Sentence

I like a little lettuce and tomato on my sandwiches.

Recent Examples on the Web

Mooyah also goes out of its way to offer black bean burgers and lettuce wrap burgers for paleo or keto diners. —Bud Kennedy, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 Sep. 2025

Sadly, sharing lettuce with friends and neighbors just doesn’t have the same wow factor as homegrown tomatoes! —The San Diego Union Tribune, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Sep. 2025

And that you were somehow expected to suffer in silence for an entire evening surviving on lettuce and fruit? —Maria Azzurra Volpe, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Sep. 2025

German Channel is a famed site for reliable manta sightings, and Ulong Channel has gorgeous walls of lettuce corals lining a sandy channel and a conveyor belt of marine life passing through. —Terry Ward, AFAR Media, 11 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English letuse, from Anglo-French letuse, probably from plural of letue lettuce plant, from Latin lactuca, from lact-, lac milk; from its milky juice — more at galaxy

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing lettuce

• Bibb lettuce
• Boston lettuce
• butter lettuce
• cos lettuce
• devil's lettuce
• iceberg lettuce
• lamb's lettuce
• miner's lettuce
• sea lettuce

Rhymes for lettuce

• metis

Kids Definition

lettuce

noun

let·​tuce ˈlet-əs 

: a common garden vegetable related to the daisies that has crisp juicy leaves used especially in salads