berry

¹

[ber-ee]

noun

plural

berries 

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

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

3. a dry seed or kernel, as of wheat.

4. the hip of the rose.

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

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

verb (used without object)

berried, berrying 

1. to gather or pick berries.

   We went berrying this morning.

2. to bear or produce berries.

Berry

²

[ber-ee, be-ree]

noun

1. Charles Edward Anderson Chuck, 1926–2017, U.S. rock-'n'-roll singer, musician, and composer.

2. Also Berri. a former province in central France.

Berry

¹

noun

1. 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)

2. 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

berry

²

/ ˈbɛrɪ /

noun

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

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

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

4. the egg of a lobster, crayfish, or similar animal

verb

1. to bear or produce berries

2. to gather or look for berries

berry

1. A simple fruit that has many seeds in a fleshy pulp. Grapes, bananas, tomatoes, and blueberries are berries.

2. Compare drupe pome See more at simple fruit

3. 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.

Other Word Forms

• berryless adjective
• berrylike adjective
• berried adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of berry¹

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-

Word History and Origins

Origin of berry¹

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

Example Sentences

Julia Child’s version is the one most Americans know, a stalwart of “Mastering the Art of French Cooking,” that calls for sweet dark cherries or summer berries.

From Salon

Back before California was settled by Europeans and others, the Miwok and Nisenan subsisted on a hunter-gatherer diet of acorns, venison, salmon, pine nuts, elderberries, and other berries and plants.

From Los Angeles Times

We brunched on the restaurant’s chorizo omelet, braised beef empanadas and a towering lemon berry French toast.

From Los Angeles Times

The evening ended on a sweet note with a brûléed cheesecake and berries — so good that I had to take the rest home.

From Salon

"When you've got things going off, try and make something else out of them. Dip fruit into yoghurts, bang them in the freezer and you've got nice little frozen berry yoghurt snacks."

From BBC

Related Words

• bean 
• grain 
• kernel 

When To Use

What does berry mean?

A berry is a small, stoneless, juicy fruit.Commonly, a berry is any small fruit that has no pit and usually produces juice. Berries range from sweet, such as the blueberry, to sour, such as the raspberry.In botany, a berry is specifically a fruit with a pulpy outer wall and many seeds. Botanically, then, some fruits commonly thought of as berries are not actually berries, including strawberries, blackberries, and raspberries. Fruits that botanically are berries include blueberries, bananas, grapes, and tomatoes.Less commonly, berry can also refer to a dry seed or kernel.As a verb, to berry means to pick berries or to produce berries.Example: We picked berries today, filling up three whole baskets.