bracken

American  

[brak-uhn] / ˈbræk ən /

noun

1. a large fern or brake, especially Pteridium aquilinum.

2. a cluster or thicket of such ferns; an area overgrown with ferns and shrubs.

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bracken British  

/ ˈbrækən /

noun

1. Also called: brake.  any of various large coarse ferns, esp Pteridium aquilinum , having large fronds with spore cases along the undersides and extensive underground stems

2. a clump of any of these ferns

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• brackened
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of bracken

1275–1325; Middle English braken < Scandinavian; compare Swedish bräken fern, Norwegian brake juniper

Explanation

Bracken is a weedy type of fern that's native to the Southern Hemisphere. If you visit Australia, you'll almost certainly see some bracken, which grows in every state of the country. While bracken, also known as the bracken fern, originally comes from New Zealand and Australia, it can be found all around the world today. In fact, bracken is considered an invasive species in most countries, leaving only deserts and extremely cold regions unaffected by its spread. Bracken is coarse and weedy, and while its roots are commonly eaten by Maori in New Zealand, the leaves have been found to cause cancer.

Related Words

• scrub
• thicket