marram grass

[ mar-uhm ]

noun

a grass, Ammophila arenaria, having matted, creeping rhizomes, grown on sandy shores of Europe, North America, and Australia to bind the sand.

Origin of marram grass

First recorded in 1630–40; originally dialect (East Anglian); from Old Norse marálmr, equivalent to marr “sea” + hálmr “grass”; see mere², haulm

Also called marram.

Words Nearby marram grass

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use marram grass in a sentence

In the Entomologist for September, 1912, this species was recorded as not uncommon on marram grass growing on the Norfolk coast.
The Moths of the British Isles, First Series | Richard South
The moth is out from June to August, and may be obtained at the flowers of marram grass as well as at sugar.
The Moths of the British Isles, First Series | Richard South
A few cautious steps to the right and I touched tufts of marram grass.
The Riddle of the Sands | Erskine Childers
Common on sand dunes especially under stems of dead marram grass.
The Biotic Associations of Cockroaches | Louis M. Roth

British Dictionary definitions for marram grass

marram grass

/ (ˈmærəm) /

noun

any of several grasses of the genus Ammophila, esp A. arenaria, that grow on sandy shores and can withstand drying: often planted to stabilize sand dunes

Origin of marram grass

C17 marram, from Old Norse marálmr, from marr sea + hálmr haulm

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

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