Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Showing results for briar. Search instead for briary.
Synonyms

briar

1 American  
[brahy-er] / ˈbraɪ ər /

noun

  1. brier.

briar 2 American  
[brahy-er] / ˈbraɪ ər /

noun

  1. brier.

briar 1 British  
/ ˈbraɪə /

noun

  1. Also called: tree heath.  an ericaceous shrub, Erica arborea , of S Europe, having a hard woody root (briarroot)

  2. a tobacco pipe made from the root of this plant

"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
briar 2 British  
/ ˈbraɪə /

noun

  1. a variant spelling of brier 1

"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

Other Word Forms

  • briary adjective

Etymology

Origin of briar

C19: from French bruyère heath, from Late Latin brūcus , of Gaulish origin

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The glasses were sold along with a Barling briar pipe and two photographs of the comic.

From BBC • Jan. 11, 2025

But like Brer Rabbit hitting the briar patch, Santos has landed in a spotlight that is, for now, warm and inviting.

From Salon • Dec. 17, 2023

Guests will have their final chance to plunge a five-story drop through a briar patch on May 30, giving Disneyland attendees one last busy Memorial Day weekend to experience the attraction in its current form.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 12, 2023

And the witness box is his briar patch.

From Washington Times • Feb. 27, 2023

Some of the young men sucked lazily on briar pipes, and the sweet smell of Prince Albert tobacco smoke drifted among them.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.