berry

[ber-ee]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR berry ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural ber·ries.

any small, usually stoneless, juicy fruit, irrespective of botanical structure, as the huckleberry, strawberry, or hackberry.

Botany. a simple fruit having a pulpy pericarp in which the seeds are embedded, as the grape, gooseberry, currant, or tomato.

a dry seed or kernel, as of wheat.

the hip of the rose.

one of the eggs of a lobster, crayfish, etc.

the berries, Older Slang. someone or something very attractive or unusual.

verb (used without object), ber·ried, ber·ry·ing.

to gather or pick berries: We went berrying this morning.

to bear or produce berries.

Origin of berry

before 1000; Middle English berie, Old English beri(g)e; cognate with Old Saxon, Old High German beri (German Beere), Old Norse ber < Germanic basjá-; akin to Dutch besie, Gothic -basi < Germanic básja-

Related formsber·ry·less, adjectiveber·ry·like, adjective

Can be confusedBarry berry bury

Berry

[ber-ee; for 2 also French be-ree]

noun

Charles Edward AndersonChuck, born 1926, U.S. rock-'n'-roll singer, musician, and composer.

Also Ber·ri. a former province in central France.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for berry

kernel, bean, grain, hip, seed, pome, drupe, drupelet, haw

Examples from the Web for berry

Contemporary Examples of berry

“Very few district attorneys are willing to go after a bishop,” says Berry.
How Sicko Priests Got Away With It
Barbie Latza Nadeau
November 16, 2014
Until they do, Berry utilizes her star quality to keep us riveted and awaiting whatever twist comes next.
Surprise! Halle Berry’s Career Is ‘Extant’
Jason Lynch
July 9, 2014
Berry has never deployed her talents consistently during her career, but acquits herself quite admirably here.
Surprise! Halle Berry’s Career Is ‘Extant’
Jason Lynch
July 9, 2014
“They stressed rules and obedience, Francis is emphatic about mercy,” Berry says.
The Seedy Side of Sainthood: Was John Paul II Canonized Too Fast?
Barbie Latza Nadeau
April 17, 2014
“What he did to the Church internally is a sadder story, most strikingly in his failure on the abuse crisis,” Berry says.
The Seedy Side of Sainthood: Was John Paul II Canonized Too Fast?
Barbie Latza Nadeau
April 17, 2014

Historical Examples of berry

In Berry it is the women that are sour, but the wines are rich.
The White Company
Arthur Conan Doyle
At times they lost the trail, as it was overgrown with fern and berry bush.
Indian Legends of Vancouver Island
Alfred Carmichael
And Cap'n Berry—the depot master—says he went to Trumet on the afternoon freight.
The Depot Master
Joseph C. Lincoln
For at that instant Miss Berry came into the room, entering from the hall.
Fair Harbor
Joseph Crosby Lincoln
Miss Berry laughed, too, but she still seemed somewhat puzzled.
Fair Harbor
Joseph Crosby Lincoln

British Dictionary definitions for berry

berry

noun plural -ries

any of various small edible fruits such as the blackberry and strawberry

botany an indehiscent fruit with two or more seeds and a fleshy pericarp, such as the grape or gooseberry

any of various seeds or dried kernels, such as a coffee bean

the egg of a lobster, crayfish, or similar animal

verb -ries, -rying or -ried (intr)

to bear or produce berries

to gather or look for berries

Derived Formsberried, adjective

Word Origin for berry

Old English berie; related to Old High German beri, Dutch bezie

Berry

noun

(ˈbɛrɪ) Chuck, full name Charles Edward Berry . born 1926, US rock-and-roll guitarist, singer, and songwriter. His frequently covered songs include "Maybellene" (1955), "Roll Over Beethoven" (1956), "Johnny B. Goode" (1958), "Memphis, Tennessee" (1959), and "Promised Land" (1964)

(French bɛri) Jean de France (ʒɑ̃ də frɑ̃s), Duc de. 1340–1416, French prince, son of King John II; coregent (1380–88) for Charles VI and a famous patron of the arts

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for berry

Old English berie, from Proto-Germanic *basjom (cf. Old Norse ber, Middle Dutch bere, German Beere "berry;" Old Saxon winber, Gothic weinabasi "grape"), of unknown origin. This and apple are the only native fruit names.

berry in Science

berry

[bĕr′ē]

A simple fruit that has many seeds in a fleshy pulp. Grapes, bananas, tomatoes, and blueberries are berries. Compare drupe pome. See more at simple fruit.

A seed or dried kernel of certain kinds of grain or other plants such as wheat, barley, or coffee.

Usage: Cucumbers and tomatoes aren't usually thought of as berries, but to a botanist they are in fact berries, while strawberries and raspberries are not. In botany, a berry is a fleshy kind of simple fruit consisting of a single ovary that has multiple seeds. Other true berries besides cucumbers and tomatoes are bananas, oranges, grapes, and blueberries. Many fruits that are popularly called berries have a different structure and thus are not true berries. For example, strawberries and raspberries are aggregate fruits, developed from multiple ovaries of a single flower. The mulberry is not a true berry either. It is a multiple fruit, like the pineapple, and is made up of the ovaries of several individual flowers.