gooseberry

American  

[goos-ber-ee, -buh-ree, gooz-] / ˈgusˌbɛr i, -bə ri, ˈguz- /

noun

• gooseberries
  plural

1. the edible, acid, globular, sometimes spiny fruit of certain prickly shrubs belonging to the genus Ribes, of the saxifrage family, especially R. uva-crispa (orR. grossularia ).

2. a shrub bearing this fruit.

---

gooseberry British  

/ ˈɡʊzbərɪ, -brɪ /

noun

1. a Eurasian shrub, Ribes uva-crispa (or R. grossularia ), having greenish, purple-tinged flowers and ovoid yellow-green or red-purple berries: family Grossulariaceae See also currant

2. 1. the berry of this plant

   2. ( as modifier )

      gooseberry jam

3. informal an unwanted single person in a group of couples, esp a third person with a couple (often in the phrase play gooseberry )

4. a tropical American solanaceous plant, Physalis peruviana, naturalized in southern Africa, having yellow flowers and edible yellow berries See also ground cherry

---

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• gooseberries
  plural

---

Etymology

Origin of gooseberry

First recorded in 1525–35; goose + berry

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

gooseberry gooseberries

Eventually, if all goes as hoped, patches of Gary oak, desert gooseberry, and mock orange will take hold and a lush ribbon of cottonwood, willow, and ash trees will line the banks of the river.

From Science Magazine ● Oct. 18, 2023

Rushing to an appointment, she walks through gooseberry bushes, only to be scolded by Ma Ginger on the grounds that she "hasn't lived here as long."

From Salon ● Apr. 30, 2023

"There was no point asking him what he wanted. It was always fish and chips, a gooseberry pancake and cup of tea. I think he had a genuine fear of things he couldn't control."

From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2021

Expect gooseberry, pink grapefruit and minerality thanks to the caliche soils these vines grow in.

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 28, 2020

The risen moon was framed snugly in the high, small window of Penelope’s room, like one of Mrs. Clarke’s fresh-baked gooseberry pies tucked inside a pie box.

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood

In the 1850s, in a determined effort to create a fruit industry for the Southeast, horticulturists began a selective breeding campaign for peaches and other fruits, including wine grapes, pears, apples and gooseberries.

From Salon ● Jun. 8, 2023

The common so-called “Zante currants” used in recipes such as soda bread are actually raisins, and they are no relation to the Ribes genus of currants and gooseberries.

From Seattle Times ● Jun. 28, 2022

Ms. Prabakaran’s mother-in-law, though, scheduled her days around food, preserving new batches of seasonal pickles every week, sending Ms. Prabakaran home with jars of gooseberries in yogurt, sweet-and-sour orange peel and stuffed Bengal plums.

From New York Times ● Jan. 6, 2020

Wash the gooseberries and cut off the little brown tops.

From The Guardian ● Aug. 17, 2019

Bep has offered to get us some fruit, at so-called bargain prices: grapes 2.50 guilders a pound, gooseberries 70 cents a pound, one peach 50 cents, melons 75 cents a pound.

From "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---