sloe

[ sloh ]

noun

1. the small, sour, blackish fruit of the blackthorn, Prunus spinosa, of the rose family.
2. the shrub itself.
3. any of various other plants of the genus Prunus, as a shrub or small tree, P. alleghaniensis, bearing dark-purple fruit.

sloe

/ sləʊ /

noun

1. the small sour blue-black fruit of the blackthorn
2. See blackthorn
   another name for blackthorn

Word History and Origins

Origin of sloe¹

before 900; Middle English slo, Old English slā ( h ); cognate with German Schlehe, Dutch slee

Word History and Origins

Origin of sloe¹

Old English slāh; related to Old High German slēha, Middle Dutch sleuuwe

Example Sentences

But hold your tongue for a while, and cast your eye along the valley, and watch the mist gathering on the furze and sloe trees.

From Project Gutenberg

Thus, at half-past ten, we find her officers drinking the toast of Deutschland unter Alles in sloe-gin.

From Project Gutenberg

Slender as a young willow, supple as an ash, eyes like the berries of the sloe-thorn.

From Project Gutenberg

The last red roseleaf had fluttered silently down; the last purple sloe had fallen from its sapless stem.

From Project Gutenberg

I looked, and sure enough he held it in his hand; and then I understood the flash of irony in the sloe-black eyes of him.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• sunless
• unlighted
• unlit