hawthorn

[ haw-thawrn ]

/ ˈhɔˌθɔrn /

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.

Nearby words

hawsehole, hawsepipe, hawser, hawser bend, hawser-laid, hawthorn, hawthorne, hawthorne effect, hawthorne, nathaniel, hawthornesque, hay

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

Related forms

haw·thorn·y, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for hawthorn

And yet he was conquered by a woman; the fairy Vivien enchanted the enchanter and kept him in a hawthorn bush under a spell.
The Life of Joan of Arc, Vol. 1 and 2 (of 2)|Anatole France
When I was here some years ago it was May, the hawthorn hedges were in bloom, and the whole country was robed in tender green.
A Year in Europe|Walter W. Moore
He broke a twig from a hawthorn bush beside him, and sat twisting it in his fingers as he stared down the line of the gold bridge.
The Harvester|Gene Stratton Porter
A hawthorn in blossom exhibited its pink sheath; lilacs drooped, borne down by their foliage.
Bouvard and Pcuchet|Gustave Flaubert

It feeds from April to June on sallow, hawthorn, and many other plants.
The Moths of the British Isles, First Series|Richard South

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