ETYM French lentille, from Latin lenticula, dim. of lens, lentis, lentil. Related to Lens.
1. Round flat seed of the lentil plant.
2. The fruit or seed of a lentil plant.
3. Widely cultivated Eurasian annual herb grown for its edible flattened seeds that are cooked like peas and also ground into meal and for its leafy stalks that are used as fodder; SYN. lentil plant, Lens culinaris.
Annual Old World plant Lens culinaris of the pea family Leguminosae. The plant, which resembles vetch, grows 15–45 cm/6–18 in high and has white, blue, or purplish flowers. The seeds, contained in pods about 1.6 cm/0.6 in long, are widely used as food.
The most common varieties are the grayish French lentil and the red Egyptian lentil.