Marrow Is a Vegetable in Britain and a Bone Tissue Everywhere
Marrow is the tissue inside bones, and in Britain a large squash. The two senses are unrelated.
Marrow is the soft tissue inside bones where blood cells are made. Britain also uses the word for a large green squash, the mature form of a courgette. The vegetable sense is unrelated in origin. The bone sense gives the phrase *to the marrow*, meaning to the innermost part — chilled to the marrow is chilled all the way through.
- Tissue inside bone. *Bone marrow.*
- A large squash (British). *A stuffed marrow.*
- The essential part. *The marrow of the argument.*
- Chilled to the marrow — thoroughly cold. *Chilled to the marrow.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | marrow | Red marrow. |
| Plural | marrows | Prize marrows. |
| Compound | bone marrow | A bone marrow transplant. |
| Related | courgette | A young courgette. |
| American | zucchini | Sliced zucchini. |
How it is used in a sentence
- Bone marrow produces blood cells.Haematology.
- A marrow is an overgrown courgette.British gardening.
- Chilled to the marrow.Thoroughly cold.
About bone marrow
- Red marrow — produces red and white blood cells and platelets
- Yellow marrow — mostly fat, and can revert to red if needed
- Location — mainly in the pelvis, sternum and vertebrae in adults
- Transplant — used to treat leukaemia and other blood disorders
- Stem cells — the source of all blood cell types
From Old English *mearg*, the bone tissue. The vegetable sense is British and much later, of separate origin.
Marrow or courgette?
A courgette is a young marrow. Left to grow, it becomes a marrow. Americans call the young one a zucchini.
What does bone marrow do?
It produces red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets from stem cells, replacing them continuously throughout life.