Phrase guide

lima bean

noun · 6 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK: /ˈliːmə ˌbiːn/
  • US: /ˈlaɪmə ˌbin/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

noun

Meaning 1

Any of species Phaseolus lunatus of bean-bearing plants.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • We hoed the lima bean rows last night.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: lima, butter bean, chad bean, double bean, Madagascar bean, sieva bean, wax bean

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Fruit of this plant.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • We had lima beans with dinner last night.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: lima, butter bean, chad bean, double bean, Madagascar bean, sieva bean, wax bean

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

Alternative letter-case form of lima bean.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: alt-of

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

broad flat beans simmered gently; never eaten raw

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: shell bean

Narrower terms: Fordhooks

5

noun

Meaning 5

bush or tall-growing bean plant having large flat edible seeds

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: lima bean plant, Phaseolus limensis

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: shell bean, shell bean plant

6

noun

Meaning 6

bush bean plant cultivated especially in southern United States having small flat edible seeds

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: sieva bean, butter bean, butter-bean plant, Phaseolus lunatus

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: shell bean, shell bean plant

History

Etymology

Named after the city of Lima, from which they were exported.

Across languages

Translations

26 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Burmese: ပဲကျား (pai:kya:) — butter bean
  • Catalan: garrofó — butter bean
  • Cebuano: patani — butter bean
  • Cherokee: ᏚᏯᏁᏆ (duyanequa) — butter bean
  • Chinese Mandarin: 棉豆 (miándòu) — butter bean
  • Dutch: limaboon — butter bean
  • Esperanto: limofazeolo — butter bean
  • Finnish: limanpapu — butter bean
  • Finnish: voipapu — butter bean
  • French: haricot de Lima — butter bean
  • German: Limabohne — butter bean
  • Haitian Creole: pwachouk — butter bean
  • Ilocano: patani — butter bean
  • Indonesian: kacang kratok — butter bean
  • Irish: pónaire mhór — butter bean
  • Italian: fagiolo di Lima — butter bean
  • Japanese: ライマメ (raimame) — butter bean
  • Polish: fasola limeńska — butter bean
  • Polish: fasola półksiężycowata — butter bean
  • Spanish: pallar — butter bean
  • Sundanese: roay — butter bean
  • Sundanese: kacang roay — butter bean
  • Tagalog: patani — butter bean
  • Turkish: Lima fasulyesi — butter bean
  • Vietnamese: đậu ngự — butter bean
  • Vietnamese: đậu Lima — butter bean