walnut

[wawl-nuht, -nuht]

noun

1. the edible nut of trees of the genus Juglans, of the North Temperate Zone.

2. the tree itself.

3. the wood of such a tree.

4. Northeastern U.S.,  the hickory nut.

5. any of various fruits or trees resembling the walnut.

6. a somewhat reddish shade of brown, as that of the heartwood of the black walnut tree.

walnut

/ ˈwɔːlˌnʌt /

noun

1. any juglandaceous deciduous tree of the genus Juglans, of America, SE Europe, and Asia, esp J. regia, which is native to W Asia but introduced elsewhere. They have aromatic leaves and flowers in catkins and are grown for their edible nuts and for their wood

2. the nut of any of these trees, having a wrinkled two-lobed seed and a hard wrinkled shell

3. the wood of any of these trees, used in making furniture, panelling, etc

4. a light yellowish-brown colour

adjective

1. made from the wood of a walnut tree

   a walnut table

2. of the colour walnut

Word History and Origins

Origin of walnut¹

before 1050; Middle English; Old English wealh-hnutu literally, foreign nut; Welsh, nut

Word History and Origins

Origin of walnut¹

Old English walh-hnutu, literally: foreign nut; compare Old French noux gauge walnut, probably translation of Vulgar Latin phrase nux gallica (unattested) Gaulish (hence, foreign) nut

Example Sentences

Nevertheless, some family possessions survive and are exhibited here: a lovely walnut writing desk used by Otto Frank, table linens with family initials, colorful crockery, a precious photo album.

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They break walnut shells for a living in the Sheidaee settlement just outside the city of Herat in western Afghanistan and receive no help from the Taliban government or from NGOs.

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The room itself was neatly ordered with walnut and cement accents.

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"I liked fishing there, I had a small plot of land, my grapes and my walnut tree," he says.

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The air smells faintly of aged walnut wood, but there is no machinery in sight.

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