fireweed

[ fahyuhr-weed ]

/ ˈfaɪərˌwid /

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noun

any of various plants appearing in recently burned clearings, as the willow herb, Epilobium angustifolium.

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Let’s start with some etymology: What are the origins of the typographical word “bracket”?

First appeared around 1750, and is related to the French word “braguette” for the name of codpiece armor.

First appeared in 1610, based on the French word “baguette” for the long loaf of bread.

First appeared in 1555, and is related to the French word “raquette” for a netted bat.

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Origin of fireweed

An Americanism dating back to 1775–85; fire + weed¹

Words nearby fireweed

fire walking, firewall, firewarden, fire watcher, firewater, fireweed, FireWire, firewood, firework, fireworks, fireworm

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Example sentences from the Web for fireweed

At peace on solid ground, I fell in love with the electric pink fireweed that popped out of nearly every opening in the trees.
Alaska Delivers the Goods in Glacier Bay National Park|Emily Pennington|April 15, 2021|Outside Online
Summer insects danced on the air, and a flock of white butterflies fanned the mobile tips of the crimson fireweed.
Summer|Edith Wharton
On every side the country was bright with the purple fireweed, which had sprung up from the ashes as if by magic.
Gold-Seeking on the Dalton Trail|Arthur R. Thompson
The fireweed, familiar everywhere in the mountains, shone like a tongue of flame against a background of green.
Jack the Young Canoeman|George Bird Grinnell

And everywhere in the burnt areas was the fireweed, that phœnix plant that springs up from the ashes of dead trees.
Tenting To-night|Mary Roberts Rinehart
There were great fields of fireweed, which presented masses of pink.
Canoeing in the wilderness|Henry David Thoreau

British Dictionary definitions for fireweed

fireweed

/ (ˈfaɪəˌwiːd) /

noun

any of various plants that appear as first vegetation in burnt-over areas, esp rosebay willowherb

Also called: pilewort a weedy North American plant, Erechtites hieracifolia, having small white or greenish flowers: family Asteraceae (composites)

an Australian rainforest tree, Stenocarpus sinuatus, having whorls of bright red flowers

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

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fireweed

noun

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Origin of fireweed

Words nearby fireweed

Example sentences from the Web for fireweed

British Dictionary definitions for fireweed

noun