potato

noun

po·​ta·​to pə-ˈtā-(ˌ)tō 

-tə,

 dialectal  pə-ˈdā-,

bə- 

plural potatoes

often attributive

1

: sweet potato

2

a

: an erect South American herb (Solanum tuberosum) of the nightshade family widely cultivated for its edible starchy tuber

b

: the tuber of a potato

called also Irish potato, spud, white potato

Illustration of potato

• potato 2a

Examples of potato in a Sentence

She's growing carrots and potatoes in her garden this year.

Recent Examples on the Web

Wimbledon prides itself on serving food from the British Isles (in 2024, no food was brought in via air freight) and has a mix of popular English staples, whether smoked trout, heritage tomatoes, chicken, potatoes, brownies, lamb, cured meats and, of course, cheese and ice cream. —Tim Newcomb, Forbes.com, 1 July 2025

Emily’s perfect potato in her second course; and Lee’s tasty pork loin highlighting his unique point-of-view in the final course. —Claire Franken, TVLine, 30 June 2025

The shop in midtown’s Newton Booth neighborhood offers two breakfast taco ($6) options: bacon, potato, egg and cheese or the vegetarian soyrizo egg, cheese and potato. —Irene Adeline Milanez, Sacbee.com, 29 June 2025

Get your potatoes, corn, onion, and andouille sausage from Lee's Farmers Market. —Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 29 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Spanish batata, from Taino

First Known Use

1565, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing potato

• Colorado potato beetle
• couch potato
• fingerling potato
• hot potato
• Irish potato
• jacket potato
• mouse potato
• new potato
• potato beetle
• potato blight
• potato bug
• potato chip
• potato crisp
• potato leafhopper
• potato pancake
• potato tuberworm
• seed potato
• small potato
• sweet potato
• white potato

Rhymes for potato

• afterglow
• akimbo
• albino
• aliquot
• allegro
• amigo
• apropos
• audio
• bungalow
• calico
• calypso
• cameo

Kids Definition

potato

noun

po·​ta·​to pə-ˈtāt-ō  pət-ˈāt- 

plural potatoes

1

: sweet potato sense 1

2

a

: an erect South American herb widely cultivated for its thick starchy edible underground tubers

b

: one of these edible tubers

called also Irish potato, spud, white potato