fiddlehead
noun
fid·dle·head
ˈfi-dᵊl-ˌhed 
: one of the young coiled fronds of some ferns (such as the ostrich fern) that are often cooked and eaten as a vegetable
Before the tightly coiled frond of the young fern uncurls, it is called a fiddlehead because of its resemblance to the scrolled head of a violin.—
Maria Kourebanas
Maria Kourebanascalled also fiddlehead fern
Examples of fiddlehead in a Sentence
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Over centuries, settlers adapted traditions to Québec’s unique bounty—wild blueberries, fiddleheads, maple sap, and the abundant fish of the St. Lawrence River—creating a fusion that’s distinctly French Canadian.
—AFAR Media, 2 Sep. 2025
The Cucumber Kimchi, $4 like the fiddleheads, was a delight, still crunchy because it’s fermented only for a day to preserve the cucumber’s natural crisp.
—Michael James Rocha, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 May 2025
Some of the more popular edible foraging finds in the state include chicken of the woods, fiddleheads, stinging nettle, wild garlic, garlic mustard, Japanese knotweed, Morel mushrooms, huckleberry, elderberry, wild raspberries, blueberries, blackberries and apples.
—Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 29 Apr. 2025
Potato gnocchi with Pennsylvania cinnamon fern fiddleheads.
—Elazar Sontag, Bon Appétit, 13 Sep. 2023
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AFAR Media, 2 Sep. 2025
The Cucumber Kimchi, $4 like the fiddleheads, was a delight, still crunchy because it’s fermented only for a day to preserve the cucumber’s natural crisp.
—Michael James Rocha, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 May 2025
Some of the more popular edible foraging finds in the state include chicken of the woods, fiddleheads, stinging nettle, wild garlic, garlic mustard, Japanese knotweed, Morel mushrooms, huckleberry, elderberry, wild raspberries, blueberries, blackberries and apples.
—Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 29 Apr. 2025
Potato gnocchi with Pennsylvania cinnamon fern fiddleheads.
—Elazar Sontag, Bon Appétit, 13 Sep. 2023
See All Example Sentences for fiddlehead
Cite this Entry
“Fiddlehead.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fiddlehead. Accessed 19 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
fiddlehead
noun
fid·dle·head
ˈfid-ᵊl-ˌhed
: one of the young tightly coiled leaves of some ferns that are often eaten as greens
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