SINCE 1828

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

pickleweed

noun pick·le·weed \ ˈpi-kəl-ˌwēd \

Definition of pickleweed

: any of several succulent plants having leaves often reduced to scales or sheaths: such as

a : glasswort

b : a shrub (Allenrolfea occidentalis) of the goosefoot family growing in moist saline soils of the southwestern U.S.

c : saltwort 2

Recent Examples of pickleweed from the Web

Water slowly snakes inland to flood the ground peppered with plugs of native pickleweed seeds, and ducks dive for emerging aquatic bugs.

— National Geographic, "How the Bay Area Is Restoring Nature's Delicate Balance," 13 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'pickleweed.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of pickleweed

circa 1925

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

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pickleman

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pickleweed

pickleworm

pickling cabbage

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