hawthorn

[ haw-thawrn ]

/ ˈhɔˌθɔrn /

Save This Word!

noun

any of numerous plants belonging to the genus Crataegus, of the rose family, typically a small tree with stiff thorns, certain North American species of which have white or pink blossoms and bright-colored fruits and are cultivated in hedges.

QUIZ

QUIZ YOURSELF ON "WAS" VS. "WERE"!

Were you ready for a quiz on this topic? Well, here it is! See how well you can differentiate between the uses of "was" vs. "were" in this quiz.

Question 1 of 7

“Was” is used for the indicative past tense of “to be,” and “were” is only used for the subjunctive past tense.

true

false

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of hawthorn

before 900; Middle English; Old English haguthorn, cognate with Middle Dutch hagedorn,Middle High German hagendorn,Old Norse hagthorn.See haw³, thorn

OTHER WORDS FROM hawthorn

hawthorny, adjective

Words nearby hawthorn

hawsehole, hawsepipe, hawser, hawser bend, hawser-laid, hawthorn, Hawthorne, Hawthorne effect, Hawthorne, Nathaniel, Hawthornesque, hay

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use hawthorn in a sentence

See, the hawthorn is shedding on us its last flowers, and the elders send out their perfume.
Chicot the Jester|Alexandre Dumas, Pere
A hawthorn hedge enclosed the garden, which was entered through a small gate set in posts of rough masonry.
The Seven Cardinal Sins: Envy and Indolence|Eugne Sue
The clusters of furze-bushes bordered the steep sides of hollow roads in anticipation of the clusters of the hawthorn.
Toilers of the Sea|Victor Hugo
Kurt was standing at the hawthorn hedge in front of the garden with his schoolbag still slung around him.
Maezli|Johanna Spyri

"Quite true-oo," repeated the dove, perching in the hawthorn.
Wood Magic|Richard Jefferies

British Dictionary definitions for hawthorn

hawthorn

/ (ˈhɔːˌθɔːn) /

noun

any of various thorny trees or shrubs of the N temperate rosaceous genus Crataegus, esp C. oxyacantha, having white or pink flowers and reddish fruits (haws)Also called (in Britain): may, may tree, mayflower

Word Origin for hawthorn

Old English haguthorn from haga hedge + thorn thorn; related to Old Norse hagthorn, Middle High German hagendorn, Dutch haagdoorn

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