hemlock

[ hem-lok ]

noun

1. a poisonous plant, Conium maculatum, of the parsley family, having purple-spotted stems, finely divided leaves, and umbels of small white flowers, used medicinally as a powerful sedative.
2. a poisonous drink made from this plant.
3. any of various other plants, especially of the genus Cicuta, as the water hemlock.
4. Also called hemlock spruce. any of several coniferous trees of the genus Tsuga, native to the U.S., characterized by a pyramidal manner of growth. Compare eastern hemlock, western hemlock.
5. the soft, light wood of a hemlock tree, used in making paper, in the construction of buildings, etc.

hemlock

/ ˈhɛmˌlɒk /

noun

1. See water hemlock
   an umbelliferous poisonous Eurasian plant, Conium maculatum, having finely divided leaves, spotted stems, and small white flowers US namepoison hemlock See also water hemlock
2. a poisonous drug derived from this plant
3. See western hemlock
   Also calledhemlock spruce any coniferous tree of the genus Tsuga, of North America and E Asia, having short flat needles: family Pinaceae See also western hemlock
4. the wood of any of these trees, used for lumber and as a source of wood pulp

Word History and Origins

Origin of hemlock¹

before 900; Middle English hemlok, humlok, Old English hymlic, hemlic; perhaps akin to Old English hymele hop plant

Word History and Origins

Origin of hemlock¹

Old English hymlic; perhaps related to hymele hop plant, Middle Low German homele, Old Norwegian humli, Old Slavonic chǔmelï

Example Sentences

Nearby, hoarfrost shimmered on hemlock branches, a bear cub peered out from a hole in the snow, and a sudden, terrifying silence echoed in the ears of the man’s ski partners.

From Outside Online

Defined by thick hardwood and hemlock forests speckled across its 8,633 acres, the area feels a world away from Pittsburgh, despite being only 130 miles away.

From Outside Online

You’ll sleep under towering hemlocks and pines along the shores of the scenic ten-mile lake, perfect for spying local wildlife including moose.

From Outside Online

We walked up the creek and made camp in a little stand of sycamore and hemlock that was nestled into the curve of a ridge.

From Outside Online

On a hazy August afternoon, a troupe of excited twentysomethings fanned out into the muggy shade of oaks and hemlocks in the woods of central Pennsylvania.

From Outside Online

Upstairs, in the living room, splintered logs of hemlock cackled and spat from inside the wood stove.

From The Daily Beast

In the interim, Herring took a short break from the band to dabble in his side-project—rapping under the moniker Hemlock Ernst.

From The Daily Beast

He figures on starting in early March, likely in Hemlock Alley, off Polk Street, near a present needle exchange.

From The Daily Beast

But Hemlock Grove does not feel like a step in the right direction.

From The Daily Beast

Horror aficionados may lap this up, but for me, Hemlock Grove is about as appealing as curdled milk.

From The Daily Beast

A hemlock had fallen athwart it, and they sat down where they could look out upon a majestic panorama of towering rock and snow.

From Project Gutenberg

Moss was placed between the logs to keep out the wind, and a thick roof was made from hemlock boughs.

From Project Gutenberg

The clear, colorless distillate had an alkaline reaction, and an odor resembling henbane or hemlock.

From Project Gutenberg

Pine or hemlock boughs are a good substitute for tar, and afford a most healthful change in the winter-food of sheep.

From Project Gutenberg

Now condemned to death, Socrates was put into prison, where some days after, he died by drinking the poison hemlock.

From Project Gutenberg