green bean

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

ˈgreen ˌbean, n. [countable]

1. Plant Biology the slender immature green pod of the kidney bean, eaten as a vegetable.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

green′ bean′, 

1. Plant Biology the immature green pod of the kidney bean, eaten as a vegetable. Also called string bean, stringless bean. 

• 1940–45, American.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

green bean noun

1. any bean plant, such as the French bean, having narrow green edible pods when unripe