Basil is a sweet green leaf that goes with tomato and cheese. Fresh basil, tear the basil, basil and mozzarella.
It should be torn rather than cut and added at the end, because heat and metal both destroy the aromatic oils that make it worth having. It hates cold and turns black in a fridge. The Greek behind the name means royal.
1nounbasilA sweet green herb used with tomato.
“Tear a few leaves of fresh basil over the pizza.”
basil is a herb.
Medieval Latin basilicum comes from Greek basilikon, royal, from basileus, a king. The plant was thought fit for a king.
Ancient Greek
βασιλικόν — royal
Medieval Latin
basilicum
Old French
basile
Middle French
basile
Middle English
basile
English, today
basil
Built from
Middle English basile, from Middle French basile, from Old French basile, from Medieval Latin basilicum, from Ancient Greek βασιλικόν (“royal”), from βασιλεύς (“king”). a doublet of basilic and basilicon and basilicum; further related to a doublet of basileus and basilean and basileiolatry.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA