milk vetch
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Related to milk vetch: astragalus
milk vetch
n.
1. Any of various plants of the genus Astragalus of the pea family, having pinnate, compound leaves and clusters of purple, white, or yellowish flowers. Also called astragalus.
2. See astragalus.
[From the belief that it increases the milk yield of goats.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
milk vetch
n
(Plants) any of various leguminous plants of the genus Astragalus, esp A. glycyphyllos, with clusters of purple, white, or yellowish flowers: formerly reputed to increase milk production in goats
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
milk′ vetch`
n.
any of various plants of the genus Astragalus, of the legume family, esp. a European plant, A. glycyphyllos, believed to increase the secretion of milk in goats.
[1590–1600]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
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| Noun | 1. |  milk vetch - any of various plants of the genus AstragalusAstragalus, genus Astragalus - large genus of annual or perennial herbs or shrubs of north temperate regions; largest genus in the family Leguminosae alpine milk vetch, Astragalus alpinus - perennial of mountainous areas of Eurasia and North America Astragalus danicus, purple milk vetch - perennial of southern and western Europe having dense racemes of purple or violet flowers ligneous plant, woody plant - a plant having hard lignified tissues or woody parts especially stems |
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