Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Any of several plants of the genus Camassia, especially C. quamash of western North America, having grasslike leaves, a raceme of blue flowers, and a bulb that has traditionally been an important food for various Native American peoples.
  • noun Death camas.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun same as camass.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun Any of the North American flowering plants of the genus Camassia.
  • noun Plural form of cama.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun any of several plants of the genus Camassia; North and South America

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Nez Perce qém’es, qém’eš.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Chinook Jargon qamaš, qawaš, from Nootka qawaš.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

cama +‎ -s

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Examples

  • The camas is a small round root, not unlike an onion in appearance.

    The Discovery of Yellowstone Park Nathaniel Pitt Langford 1871

  • There is a poisonous camas, which is sometimes mistaken for the genuine root, but which cannot be eaten in large quantities without fatal results.

    The Discovery of Yellowstone Park Nathaniel Pitt Langford 1871

  • The root which the Indians used in so many ways is now known as camas; it is still much sought for by the Nez Percés and other wandering tribes in the Northwest, and Camas Prairie, in that region, derives its name from the much-sought-for vegetable.

    First Across the Continent; The Story of The Exploring Expedition of Lewis and Clark in 1804-5-6 1805

  • Review the sleeping set-up: bigger beds for couples, quaintly called camas de matrimonio, can be harder to come by.

    tripso.com 2009

  • I have been told by James Stuart that in the valley of the Snake river the "camas" and the "cowse" roots are to be found in great abundance, and are much prized as food by the Indians.

    The Discovery of Yellowstone Park Nathaniel Pitt Langford 1871

  • The first was a shrub of the kind called "camas," which thrives even in lands unfit for culture.

    Godfrey Morgan A Californian Mystery Jules Verne 1866

  • No le permitiré tener acceso a las camas o los muebles en la habitación.

    Traveling with dogs (and cats) in Mexico 2009

  • Pues, cuando hablamos de diseño todo vale, y parece que el “problema” de las camas cuando hay visitas inesperadas es algo que ha inspirado al ingeniero Claus Molgaard y al diseñador Ole Jensen.

    Sectional Sofa 2009

  • La integración de las estanterías con las camas y escritorios, en algunos de sus diseños resulta espectacular, especialmente cuando se trata de literas.

    10 Cute Small Room Arrangements for Teens 2009

  • No le permitiré tener acceso a las camas o los muebles en la habitación.

    Traveling with dogs (and cats) in Mexico 2009

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