Osage orange

noun

1. Also called bois d'arc, bowwood. a tree, Maclura pomifera, of the mulberry family, native to the south-central U.S., having hard, yellowish wood and often cultivated for hedges.
2. the round, rough-skinned, inedible fruit of this tree.

Osage orange

noun

1. a North American moraceous tree, Maclura pomifera, grown for hedges and ornament
2. the warty orange-like fruit of this plant

Word History and Origins

Origin of Osage orange¹

First recorded in 1810–20

Example Sentences

The dyeing principle of the Osage orange wood was not used prior to the investigations conducted by the Laboratory.

From Project Gutenberg

He walked on to the far corner of the osage-orange thicket, and stood there in the deepest part of the shadow.

From Project Gutenberg

She seemed to be just sauntering about, occasionally kicking an osage orange.

From Project Gutenberg

Lieutenant Aldrich and the men with him, escaped through the friendly protection of an osage orange grove.

From Project Gutenberg

Second in preference to the hilltop outcrop as a house site was the base of an osage orange tree in thick woods.

From Project Gutenberg