celery

noun

cel·​ery ˈse-lə-rē 

ˈsel-rē

plural celeries

: a European herb (Apium graveolens) of the carrot family

specifically : one of a cultivated variety (A. graveolens var. dulce) with leafstalks eaten raw or cooked

Examples of celery in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

For example, don’t place raw meat next to the celery sticks that will go with your buffalo wings. —Eduardo Cuevas, USA TODAY, 7 Feb. 2025

Add celery, carrots, onion, and green pepper; cook 4 minutes or until tender. —Bev Barrett, Twin Cities, 7 Feb. 2025

Orders include extra wing sauce, dressing, celery sticks and baby carrots. —Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 6 Feb. 2025

Get Duff’s Spicy BBQ Wings 50-Pack, which is packed with dozens of saucy drums and flats, crunchy celery sticks and baby carrots, and bleu cheese dipping sauce. —Jeremy Repanich, Robb Report, 27 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French céleri (17th-century celeris, sceleri, Middle French scellerin), borrowed from an Upper Italian form (as Ligurian sèlarʼu, Lombard sèleri), altered from Vulgar Latin *selinum (Late Latin selīnon), borrowed from Greek sélīnon, perhaps from a pre-Greek substratal language

First Known Use

1664, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing celery

• celery cabbage
• celery root
• wild celery

Kids Definition

celery

noun

cel·​ery ˈsel-(ə-)rē 

plural celeries

: a European herb related to the carrot and widely grown for the thick edible stems

also : the stems of celery used for food