bitternut

American  

[bit-er-nuht] / ˈbɪt ərˌnʌt /

noun

1. a hickory, Carya cordiformis, of the eastern and southern U.S., bearing a smooth, gray, bitter seed.

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bitternut British  

/ ˈbɪtəˌnʌt /

noun

1. an E North American hickory tree, Carya cordiformis , with thin-shelled nuts and bitter kernels

2. the nut of this plant

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Etymology

Origin of bitternut

An Americanism dating back to 1800–10; bitter + nut

Example Sentences

The nonnative trees include ponderosa pine from South Dakota and Nebraska, and bitternut hickory from southern Minnesota and Illinois.

From New York Times • Apr. 25, 2019

Palik pointed out bitternut hickory from southern Minnesota and Illinois.

From Washington Post

The number of varieties I tested on bitternut stock is roughly about 75.

From Northern Nut Growers Association Report of the Proceedings at the Thirty-Seventh Annual Report Wooster, Ohio, September 3, 4, 5, 1946 by Northern Nut Growers Association

THE bitternut hickory is a tall slender tree with broadly pyramidal crown, attaining a height of 100 feet and a diameter of 2 to 3 feet.

From Forest Trees of Illinois How to Know Them by Fuller George D.

BITTERNUT, Carya cordiformis All of our experiences with bitternut as a stock, both in the nursery and as young trees growing in permanent locations, have been very favorable.

From Northern Nut Growers Association Report of the Proceedings at the 43rd Annual Meeting Rockport, Indiana, August 25, 26 and 27, 1952 by Northern Nut Growers Association