dyer's greenweed

American

[green-weed] / ˈgrinˌwid /

noun

woadwaxen.

dyer's-greenweed British

noun

Also called: woadwaxen. woodwaxen. a small Eurasian leguminous shrub, Genista tinctoria, whose yellow flowers yield a yellow dye, formerly mixed with woad to produce the colour Kendal green

"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

Etymology

Origin of dyer's greenweed

First recorded in 1590–1600

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.

“Dyer’s greenweed,” the woman announced, poking with her cane at a shrub with small flowers.

From Literature

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