Măn'gel-wûr'zel, n.

noun

(măng'gl-wûr'-zel), n. [Ger., apparently from mangel, want, scarcity, and wurzel, root; supposed to be called so because it is used as a substitute for bread in times of scarcity; but it is rather a corruption from Ger. mangold, beet, mangoldwurzel, beet-root.] (Bot.) A plant of the genus Beta (B. altissima), by some considered a mere variety of the ordinary beet. See BEET. [Written also mangold-wurzel.]

A botanical illustration of a mangel-wurzel plant, showing its leafy top and long, tapered root. — Mangel Wurzel (*Beta hybrida*).