darnel

American  

[dahr-nl] / ˈdɑr nl /

noun

1. any of several grasses of the genus Lolium, having simple stems, flat leaves, and terminal spikes.

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darnel British  

/ ˈdɑːnəl /

noun

1. any of several grasses of the genus Lolium, esp L. temulentum, that grow as weeds in grain fields in Europe and Asia

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Etymology

Origin of darnel

1275–1325; Middle English; compare French (Walloon) darnelle, probably < Germanic

Example Sentences

Around them lay, amid beds of nettles and great dock leaves, and darnel and tangles of briars, and tall foxgloves and deadly nightshade, the broken pillars of a marble temple.

From A Child's Book of Saints by Robinson, T. H. (Thomas Heath)

In some most remote northern parts of England the farmer lights a wisp of straw, which he carries round his fields to protect them from the tare and darnel, the devil and witches.

From Old English Sports, Pastimes and Customs by Ditchfield, P. H. (Peter Hampson)

Nor darnel these, nor wolf's-tail grass infests; From core and leaf we pick the insect pests, And pick we those that eat the joints and roots:— So do we guard from harm the growing fruits.

From The Wisdom of Confucius with Critical and Biographical Sketches by Wilson, Epiphanius

The grains of the darnel are not so heavy as the wheat, and not so compactly set upon the stalk.

From The Parables of Our Lord by Arnot, William

Had the gods loved me I had lain Where darnel is, and thorn, And the wild night-bird's nightlong strain Trembles in boughs forlorn.

From The Listeners and Other Poems by De la Mare, Walter