salad

noun

sal·​ad ˈsa-ləd 

1

: any of various usually cold dishes: such as

a

: raw greens (such as lettuce) often combined with other vegetables and toppings and served especially with dressing

b

: small pieces of food (such as pasta, meat, fruit, or vegetables) usually mixed with a dressing (such as mayonnaise) or set in gelatin

2

: a green vegetable or herb grown for salad

especially : lettuce

3

: a usually incongruous mixture : hodgepodge

Synonyms

• agglomerate
• agglomeration
• alphabet soup
• assortment
• botch
• clutter
• collage
• crazy quilt
• farrago
• gallimaufry
• grab bag
• gumbo
• hash
• hodgepodge
• hotchpotch
• jambalaya
• jumble
• jungle
• litter
• macédoine
• medley
• mélange
• menagerie
• miscellanea
• miscellany
• mishmash
• mixed bag
• montage
• motley
• muddle
• olio
• olla podrida
• omnium-gatherum
• pastiche
• patchwork
• patchwork quilt
• potpourri
• ragbag
• ragout
• rummage
• salmagundi
• scramble
• shuffle
• smorgasbord
• stew
• tumble
• variety
• welter

Examples of salad in a Sentence

For dinner we had roast chicken and a salad.

a salad of fresh greens

I tossed the salad with some oil and vinegar and set it on the table.

Would you like soup or salad with your sandwich?

Recent Examples on the Web

Read on below: Make a London Fog tea latte and bring the coffee shop favorite home How to make the angel food cake of your dreams Bacon vinaigrette works wonders in this asparagus and white bean salad Want more recipes and tips? —Becky Krystal, Washington Post, 10 Apr. 2024

This salad looks to the Southwest for flavor, fragrance and chile heat. —Lynda Balslev, The Mercury News, 8 Apr. 2024

Rainey believes the Treasure Valley is ready for Roots, which will include an in-store cafe with entrees, salads and sandwiches available to eat there or take home. —John Sowell, Idaho Statesman, 8 Apr. 2024

Salad Spinner $65 Buy on Bed Bath & Beyond $66 $60 Buy on Oxo $65 If salads are in your future, a salad spinner to dry your greens will make a great line item on your registry. —Michelle Rostamian, Peoplemag, 6 Apr. 2024

The menu is simple but fresh, with salads, artisanal sandwiches, flatbreads, and dinner offerings. —Kira Turnbull, Travel + Leisure, 2 Apr. 2024

Fruit salad is a fresh addition to any Saturday brunch; there's something about a crystal bowl filled with bright, colorful fruit that perfectly complements any Southern cook's menu plans. —Abigail Wilt, Southern Living, 1 Apr. 2024

The entire buffet adds leg of lamb, ham and roast chicken, oysters, shrimp cocktail and ceviche, plus sides and salads. —Bud Kennedy, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Mar. 2024

Fruit salad was also added to the menu a few years ago. —Amy Schwabe, Journal Sentinel, 27 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English salat, salade, borrowed from Middle French salade "dish of seasoned greens and herbs," borrowed from a medieval Upper Italian predecessor of modern dialectal (Piedmont) salada, salatta (Tuscan insalata) from salar "to add salt to, salt" (going back to Vulgar Latin *salāre, re-formation of Latin salīre, sallīre "to salt, preserve with salt," derivative of sal-, sāl "salt") + -ata, -ada -ade — more at salt entry 1

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing salad

• Caesar salad
• chef's salad
• Cobb salad
• corn salad
• garden salad
• Greek salad
• house salad
• house (salad) dressing
• salad bar
• salad cream
• salad days
• salad dressing
• salad greens
• salad oil
• tossed salad
• Waldorf salad
• word salad

Kids Definition

salad

noun

sal·​ad ˈsal-əd 

1

: green vegetables (as lettuce) often with tomato, cucumber, or radish served with dressing

2

: a cold dish (as of meat, shellfish, fruit, or vegetables) usually prepared with a dressing