Meaning & use
Spanish yam
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A tropical climbing plant grown for its large edible root, also called the cush-cush yam.
Grammar: Countable: one Spanish yam, two Spanish yams.
Patterns
- grow Spanish yams
- peel a Spanish yam
Farmers in the Caribbean often grow Spanish yams beside other root crops.
She boiled a Spanish yam and served it with salted fish.
nouncountable or uncountable
The starchy root of this plant, cooked and eaten as a vegetable.
Grammar: Countable for a single root; uncountable when talking about the food in general.
Patterns
- cook Spanish yam
- a kilo of Spanish yam
The market stall sold fresh Spanish yam by the pound.
Spanish yam has a firm texture that holds up well in stews.
Word forms
| plural | Spanish yams |
|---|
Common combinations
- grow Spanish yams
- They grow Spanish yams on the hillside behind the house.
- peel a Spanish yam
- You should peel a Spanish yam before boiling it.
- boiled Spanish yam
- Boiled Spanish yam is a common side dish on the island.
- a crop of Spanish yams
- The heavy rain damaged the whole crop of Spanish yams.
Synonyms and how they differ
- cush-cush
- A Caribbean name for the same plant; it is more regional and less known outside the islands.
- yam
- A general word for many starchy roots; Spanish yam names one specific kind.
Word family
- yam noun
- A general name for several edible starchy roots.
Commonly confused: Spanish yam or sweet potato?
Spanish yam vs sweet potato
In the US, what shoppers call a 'yam' is usually a sweet potato; the true Spanish yam is a different tropical root.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'Spanish yam' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Spanish yam' is a food noun, so it fits as the object of 'roasted'. The other options attach phrases that do not describe a vegetable.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “Spanish yam”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.