sweet potato

noun

Definition of sweet potato

1 : a tropical vine (Ipomoea batatas) of the morning-glory family that is often grown for its edible tuberous root or for its ornamental variously shaped green to purple leaves and usually white to pinkish funnel-shaped flowers with pink to purple centers also : the large thick sweet and nutritious tuberous root of the sweet potato that has beige, yellow, orange, red, or purple flesh and is cooked and eaten as a vegetable — compare yam sense 2

2 : ocarina

Examples of sweet potato in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Spiralized sweet potatoes keep the dish nice and light. — Danielle Page, USA TODAY, "Inventive summer salads for a fresh take on dinner," 2 July 2018 Kirsch encouraged me to bake one sweet potato at the beginning of the week and eat it in fourths. — Lauren Levinson, Harper's BAZAAR, "I Stopped Eating Carbs After 2:30 p.m. and It Changed My Body," 14 June 2018 Their trap was empty, and the sweet potato the biologists used for bait was gone. — Kurtis Alexander, San Francisco Chronicle, "Eradication of invasive rodent off to a slow start in California," 12 May 2018 Next Makayla Major and Camelle Wilkins very carefully cut the sweet potatoes into wedges. — Philly.com, "Salmon cakes good, sweet potato wedges missing something," 2 May 2018 Slice the sweet potatoes into 1/2-inch pieces and put on a large baking sheet with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and sea salt and pepper. — Ellise Pierce, star-telegram, "Simple no-cook sauces for spring keep time in the kitchen to a minimum | Fort Worth Star-Telegram," 28 Mar. 2018 In one of my accompanying recipes, the sweet potato in the dumplings call the tune for the aromatic spices that go into the stew. — Sheri Castle, sacbee, "Dumplings can make a splash | The Sacramento Bee," 13 Feb. 2018 On a second rimmed baking sheet, toss the sweet potato with the oil, thyme and 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper. — The Good Housekeeping Test Kitchen, Good Housekeeping, "Shortcut Mac 'n' Cheese with Crispy Bacon and Sweet Potatoes," 28 Aug. 2017 Get out the sweet potatoes for even more chips to snack on! 14. — Jane Maynard, Cosmopolitan, "15 Foods You Won't Believe You Can Make in the Microwave," 26 Mar. 2014

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