Meaning & use
watercress
Last updated
Meaning
noununcountable
A leafy plant that grows in clean running water and is eaten for its sharp, peppery taste in salads, soups and sandwiches.
Grammar: Uncountable like most salad leaves: some watercress, a bunch of watercress.
Patterns
- a bunch of watercress
- watercress soup
We picked wild watercress growing along the stream.
She added a handful of watercress to the sandwich for some bite.
Watercress soup is a classic spring dish.
Common combinations
- watercress soup
- Watercress soup is smooth, green and peppery.
- watercress salad
- A watercress salad goes well with grilled fish.
- a bunch of watercress
- I bought a bunch of watercress at the farmers' market.
- wild watercress
- Wild watercress should only be picked from clean water.
- watercress sandwich
- Cucumber and watercress sandwiches were served with tea.
Synonyms and how they differ
Word family
- cress noun
- a small peppery salad plant
- garden cress noun
- a related cress grown on soil or damp paper
- watercress bed noun
- a shallow pool where the plant is farmed
Commonly confused: watercress or nasturtium?
watercress vs nasturtium
Nasturtium is the garden flower with edible leaves; the plant's scientific name for watercress also begins with Nasturtium, which confuses some learners.
Practice
What is watercress mainly eaten as?
Choose one answer.
Watercress is a leafy plant with a sharp, peppery taste used in salads, soups and sandwiches. It is not a fruit, root or spice.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “watercress”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.