greenbrier

American

[green-brahy-er] / ˈgrinˌbraɪ ər /

noun

catbrier.

greenbrier British

/ ˈɡriːnˌbraɪə /

noun

Also called: cat brier. any of several prickly climbing plants of the liliaceous genus Smilax, esp S. rotundifolia of the eastern US, which has small green flowers and blackish berries

"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 greenbrier

An Americanism dating back to 1775–85; green + brier ¹

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.

Like a volcano, it seemed to spit forth its arrangement: a 14-foot-high foundation of gloriously twisted mountain laurel branches covered in lichen, wrapped in foraged invasive greenbrier vines.

From New York Times • Mar. 4, 2020

And if you push aside the spring growth of vinca, greenbrier vines and flowering plum, you can see the names of a forgotten black community, etched in concrete or marble.

From Washington Times • Mar. 26, 2018

The lodge and cabins can barely be glimpsed through the greenbrier and the heavy foliage.

From Washington Post • Jul. 9, 2010

She gestures across the medieval rooftops, where aerials grow like greenbrier.

From Time Magazine Archive

The rabbit dove into a patch of greenbrier and Oksi flew back to her perch.

From "Frightful's Mountain" by Jean Craighead George

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