willow

[wil-oh]

noun

1. any tree or shrub of the genus Salix, characterized by narrow, lance-shaped leaves and dense catkins bearing small flowers, many species having tough, pliable twigs or branches used for wickerwork, etc.

2. the wood of any of these trees.

3. Informal.,  something, especially a cricket bat, made of willow wood.

4. Also called willower, willy. a machine consisting essentially of a cylinder armed with spikes revolving within a spiked casing, for opening and cleaning cotton or other fiber.

verb (used with object)

1. to treat (textile fibers) with a willow.

willow

¹

/ ˈwɪləʊ /

noun

1. any of numerous salicaceous trees and shrubs of the genus Salix, such as the weeping willow and osiers of N temperate regions, which have graceful flexible branches, flowers in catkins, and feathery seeds

2. the whitish wood of certain of these trees

3. something made of willow wood, such as a cricket or baseball bat

4. a machine having a system of revolving spikes for opening and cleaning raw textile fibres

Willow

²

noun

1. a small town in S Alaska, about 113 km (70 miles) northwest of Anchorage: chosen as the site of the projected new state capital in 1976, a plan which never came to fruition. Pop: 1658 (2000)

Other Word Forms

• willowlike adjective
• willowish adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of willow¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English wilwe, variant of wilghe, Old English welig; cognate with Old Saxon wilgia, Dutch wilg, Low German wilge

Word History and Origins

Origin of willow¹

Old English welig; related to wilige wicker basket, Old Saxon wilgia, Middle High German wilge, Greek helikē willow, helix twisted

Example Sentences

As well as rice, the team are trialling other crops including lettuce and hybrid willow that grow in waterlogged conditions.

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Their post also featured a drawing of a willow tree.

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What saved him were the river’s reeds and willows, which slowed the water and gave him a chance to pull himself out.

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The group stopped for a break and sat at a picnic table in the shade of a willow tree.

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It has been trying to restore the woodlands by introducing downy birch, sessile oak, hazel, willow, aspen and alder as well as endangered tree species such as Arran whitebeam.

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Related Words

• blue-green 
• olive