Meaning & use
tuber
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Meanings
nouncountable
A short, thick part of an underground stem or root that stores food and can grow into a new plant.
Grammar: Countable: use a/an or a plural; say 'a tuber' or 'tubers'.
Patterns
- a tuber grows
- plant tubers
- harvest tubers
The potato is a tuber that stores starch underground.
Farmers plant tubers in spring and dig them up in autumn.
Some tubers, like yams, can be very large.
nouncountabletechnical
A small rounded swelling on a root or stem, especially in certain plants.
Grammar: Countable; often used in scientific descriptions of plant parts.
Patterns
- root tuber
- stem tuber
- a tuber forms
The plant produces small tubers along its roots.
These tubers help the plant survive dry periods.
nouncountablemedical
A swelling or lump in a body part, especially one caused by disease.
Grammar: Countable; used mainly in medical contexts.
Patterns
- a tuber on the skin
- tuber formation
The doctor noticed a small tuber on the patient's arm.
In some diseases, tubers can form in the lungs.
Word forms
| plural | tubers |
|---|
Common combinations
- potato tuber
- A potato tuber is actually a modified stem, not a root.
- root tuber
- The sweet potato is a root tuber.
- stem tuber
- Yams are stem tubers.
- tuber crop
- Cassava is an important tuber crop in many tropical countries.
- edible tuber
- The edible tubers are harvested after the leaves die back.
Synonyms and how they differ
- bulb
- A bulb is a rounded underground plant part made of layered leaves, like an onion; a tuber is a thickened stem or root.
- corm
- A corm is a short, swollen underground stem like a tuber but more solid and upright, as in crocuses.
- rhizome
- A rhizome is an underground stem that grows horizontally; a tuber is often a swollen part of a rhizome or root.
Word family
- tuberous adjective
- Having tubers or swellings; e.g., tuberous roots.
Commonly confused: tuber or tubercle? tuber or tuberculosis?
tuber vs tubercle
A tubercle is a small rounded lump, often on a bone or in the lung; a tuber is a larger food-storing plant part.
tuber vs tuberculosis
Tuberculosis is a serious infectious disease; a tuber is a plant part or a small swelling.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'tuber' correctly?
Choose one answer.
A tuber is an underground plant part that can grow into a new plant, so planting one to grow a potato plant is correct. Option An is wrong because a lung swelling is usually called a tubercle or a lesion, not a tuber. Option C and D are incorrect because a tuber is not tall and is not a dessert food.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “tuber”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.