heather

¹ American  

[heth-er] / ˈhɛð ər /

noun

1. any of various heaths, especially Calluna vulgaris, of England and Scotland, having small, pinkish-purple flowers.

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adjective

1. (of a yarn or fabric color) subtly flecked or mottled.

   all-cotton turtlenecks in your choice of five solid colors plus heather gray and heather green.

Heather ² American  

[heth-er] / ˈhɛð ər /

noun

1. a female given name.

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heather British  

/ ˈhɛðə /

noun

1. Also called: ling.   heath.  a low-growing evergreen Eurasian ericaceous shrub, Calluna vulgaris, that grows in dense masses on open ground and has clusters of small bell-shaped typically pinkish-purple flowers

2. any of certain similar plants

3. a purplish-red to pinkish-purple colour

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adjective

1. of a heather colour

2. of or relating to interwoven yarns of mixed colours

   heather mixture

Other Word Forms

• heathered adjective
• heathery adjective

Etymology

Origin of heather

1300–50; spelling variant of hether, earlier hedder, hadder, hather, Middle English hathir; akin to heath

Example Sentences

Only decades ago many of the cottages in Scotland’s Highlands were roofed in heather, bracken and marram grass.

From The Wall Street Journal

"We had a search recently and underneath a load of heather where you couldn't see a thing from the surface, Henry recovered a tiny bird's skull."

From BBC

Muirburns are controlled fires set burn off old heather and other vegetation on grouse shooting estates.

From BBC

The wild, flat landscapes dotted with gorse and heather are known for their wildlife, including rare species like the sand lizard, woodlark and silver-studded blue butterfly.

From BBC

Upland heathland is characterised by the presence of low-growing shrubs, such as heather.

From BBC

Related Words

• drab
• dusty
• silvery