Bean is a common name for large plant seeds of several genera of Fabaceae (formerly Leguminosae) used for food or feed. They are also known as legumes in the US and pulses in the UK.Although "beans" usually means the seeds of bean plants, it can also mean (especially in the USA) the whole young pods of bean plants, which if picked before the pods ripen and dry, can be tender enough to eat whole, whether cooked or raw. Thus the word "green beans" means "green" in the sense of unripe, as the beans inside the pods of green beans are often too small to form a significance part of the cooked vegetable.

Campbell's Kitchen - Recipe Detail - Green Bean CasseroleRecipe for green bean casserole made with cream of mushroom soup, green beans, and crunchy onions. A holiday green bean casserole recipe, made with green beans, mushroom soup, French ... Green Beans> Green Bean Casseroles> Green Bean Casserole - Holiday

It is Tuesday, June 23, 1999. Capt. Joseph Hazelwood dons apron and gloves at the Bean's Cafe soup kitchen in Anchorage, Alaska. He works silently emptying lettuce into a container as part of his 1,000-hour community service sentence. Monday he loaded a truck with abandoned auto parts and assorted junk thrown along Anchorage roadways.