Mushroom
A mushroom, or toadstool, is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground on soil or on its food source.
The standard for the name “mushroom” is the cultivated white button mushroom, Agaricus bisporus; hence the word “mushroom” is most often applied to those fungi (Basidiomycota, Agaricomycetes) that have a stem (stipe), a cap (pileus), and gills (lamellae, sing. lamella) on the underside of the cap. “Mushroom” also describes a variety of other gilled fungi, with or without stems, therefore the term is used to describe the fleshy fruiting bodies of some Ascomycota. These gills produce microscopic spores that help the fungus spread across the ground or its occupant surface.
Forms deviating from the standard morphology usually have more specific names, such as “bolete”, “puffball”, “stinkhorn”, and “morel”, and gilled mushrooms themselves are often called “agarics” in reference to their similarity to Agaricus or their order Agaricales. By extension, the term “mushroom” can also refer to either the entire fungus when in culture, the thallus (called a mycelium) of species forming the fruiting bodies called mushrooms, or the species itself.
Champignon (noun)
Agaricus bisporus, a species of mushroom commonly used in cooking
Mushroom (noun)
Any of the fleshy fruiting bodies of fungi typically produced above ground on soil or on their food sources (such as decaying wood).
“mushrump|q1=archaic|shroom”
“Some mushrooms are edible and taste good, while others are poisonous and taste foul.”
Mushroom (noun)
A fungus producing such fruiting bodies.
Mushroom (noun)
Champignon or Agaricus bisporus, the mushroom species most commonly used in cooking.
Mushroom (noun)
Any of the mushroom-shaped pegs in bar billiards.
Mushroom (noun)
A concrete column with a thickened portion at the top, used to support a slab.
Mushroom (noun)
One who rises suddenly from a low condition in life; an upstart.
Mushroom (noun)
Something that grows very quickly or seems to appear suddenly.
Mushroom (adjective)
Having characteristics like those of a mushroom, for example in shape or appearance, speed of growth, or texture.
“mushroom cloud”
Mushroom (verb)
To grow quickly to a large size.
“The town’s population mushroomed from 10,000 to 110,000 in five years.”
Mushroom (verb)
To gather mushrooms.
“We used to go mushrooming in the forest every weekend.”
Mushroom (verb)
To form the shape of a mushroom when striking a soft target.