a plant, Medicago sativa, of the legume family, usually having bluish-purple flowers, originating in the Near East and widely cultivated as a forage crop.
Also called lucerne, purple medic.
Origin of alfalfa
1835–45; <Spanish, variant of alfalfez<Spanish Arabic al the + faṣfaṣah<Persian ispist lucerne
Words nearby alfalfa
Alexius I, Alexius I Comnenus, aleyard, Alf, alfa, alfalfa, alfalfa butterfly, alfalfa weevil, Al Farabi, Alfaro, Al Fatah
They grew up as crop and dairy farmers in Iowa, tending corn, soy, alfalfa, hay, oats and clover.
An American Prairie Feast|Sophie Menin|July 17, 2010|DAILY BEAST
To wit, Parvin has been a member of the Alfalfa Club for 26 years.
How Funny Is Obama?|Sandra McElwaine|January 30, 2009|DAILY BEAST
Health-seekers paid better than cattle or alfalfa she found.
Travelers Five Along Life's Highway|Annie Fellows Johnston
It isn't any fraud—there ARE sections of the country that produce almost anything, from alfalfa to strawberries.
The Flying U's Last Stand|B. M. Bower
It is also the standard pasture for swine where it can be grown, and where alfalfa is not a staple crop.
Clovers and How to Grow Them|Thomas Shaw
Bob Johnson was stripping a stalk of alfalfa in his fingers.
Whispering Smith|Frank H. Spearman
Hay and corn fodder are excellent winter forage; but alfalfa hay has proved to be the best dry food for both elk and deer.
Fur Farming|A. R. Harding
British Dictionary definitions for alfalfa
alfalfa
/ (ælˈfælfə) /
noun
a leguminous plant, Medicago sativa, of Europe and Asia, having compound leaves with three leaflets and clusters of small purplish flowers. It is widely cultivated for forage and as a nitrogen fixer and used as a commercial source of chlorophyllAlso called: lucerne
Word Origin for alfalfa
C19: from Spanish, from Arabic al-fasfasah, from al the + fasfasah the best sort of fodder