gorse

American  

[gawrs] / gɔrs /

noun

1. any spiny shrub of the genus Ulex, of the legume family, native to the Old World, especially U. europaeus, having rudimentary leaves and yellow flowers and growing in waste places and sandy soil.

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gorse British  

/ ɡɔːs /

noun

1. Also called: furze.   whin.  any evergreen shrub of the leguminous genus Ulex, esp the European species U. europeaus, which has yellow flowers and thick green spines instead of leaves

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Other Word Forms

• gorsy
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of gorse

before 900; Middle English gorst, Old English; akin to German Gerste, Latin hordeum barley

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

gorse

It has been doing that through grazing cattle, which eat the vegetation, while in other areas land managers have used machines to cut and mulch the grass, gorse, bracken and heather.

From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026

The birds thrive in lowland heath habitats, nesting in the dense gorse, where they also hunt for spiders and caterpillars.

From BBC ● May 29, 2026

The law in Northern Ireland states that the burning of vegetation such as heather, gorse, whin or fern may only be carried out between 1 September and 14 April.

From BBC ● May 2, 2026

The hill also caught fire in February 2019, with dozens of firefighters working through the night to extinguish a large gorse blaze.

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2025

For the most part it was covered with a thick growth of gorse and whortleberry, and low tough thorns, though here and there clearings opened, the scars of recent fires.

From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien

Related Words

• scrub
• thicket