Russian thistle
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of Russian thistle
An Americanism dating back to 1890–95
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But Russian thistle is a monstrous piece of botanical grotesquerie, loathed by all.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 17, 2025
Saturday’s tumbleweed takeover of South Jordan is not isolated, but it’s also not a fiendish plan by the invasive Russian thistle to conquer the western United States.
From Seattle Times • Mar. 5, 2024
The exhibit includes an actual tumbleweed, or Russian thistle, a plant immigrants brought to South Dakota in 1873.
From Washington Times • Apr. 17, 2016
He noted with dismay invasive plants left behind by overgrazing: tumbleweed, Russian thistle, cheatgrass.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 14, 2016
A weed like the Russian thistle, for instance, will defy all usual means for its extermination.
From Inventions in the Century by Doolittle, William Henry
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
