celery

American  

[sel-uh-ree, sel-ree] / ˈsɛl ə ri, ˈsɛl ri /

noun

1. a plant, Apium graveolens, of the parsley family, whose leafstalks are eaten raw or cooked.

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celery British  

/ ˈsɛlərɪ /

noun

1. an umbelliferous Eurasian plant, Apium graveolens dulce, whose blanched leafstalks are used in salads or cooked as a vegetable See also celeriac

2. a related and similar plant, Apium graveolens

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Etymology

Origin of celery

1655–65; < French céleri < Italian seleri, plural of selero ≪ Greek sélinon parsley

Explanation

Celery is a very crunchy, succulent vegetable that grows in stalks. You can cook celery, often with more flavorful vegetables, or eat it raw. Celery is a very mild-flavored vegetable that adds crunch to a salad or a subtle taste to sauteed onions and garlic. Your grandmother might love to serve "ants on a log," or peanut butter in the hollow of a celery stalk, with raisins as the "ants." Depending on your feelings about celery, you might feel slightly less enthusiastic.

Example Sentences

He teaches them that peanut butter can make celery better, and they teach him that he’s cooler than he thinks.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 8, 2026

I went on a wellness kick: I stopped eating gluten and dairy and forced down celery juice every morning.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 13, 2026

It’s a defense of winter salads and includes several recipes, like one for a celery and radish salad with fig vinaigrette and another for a citrus salad with green olives, burrata and honey-roasted pistachios.

From Salon • Feb. 7, 2026

They moved to a prefabricated portable home in 2022, and his celery is now sold to a local supermarket chain.

From Barron's • Jan. 29, 2026

It was an unusual piece of decoration, that was for sure—beige and cracked and knobby, as wide as a rib of celery and as long as a pencil.

From "A Tangle of Knots" by Lisa Graff