Lettuce
Lettuce (let"tis) , noun
[Old English letuce, prob. through Old French from some Late Latin derivative of Latin lactuca lettuce, which, according to Varro, is from lac, lactis, milk, on account of the milky white juice which flows from it when it is cut: compare French laitue. Compare Lacteal, Lactucic.]
1.
(Botany) A composite plant of the genus Lactuca (Lactuca sativa), the leaves of which are used as salad. Plants of this genus yield a milky juice, from which lactucarium is obtained. The commonest wild lettuce of the United States is Lactuca Canadensis.
2.
United States currency; dollar bills; greenbacks. [slang]
Collocations (3)
Lettuce opium , See Lactucarium.
Sea lettuce , certain papery green seaweeds of the genus Ulva.