crab tree

American  

noun

1. a tree bearing crab apples.

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Etymology

Origin of crab tree

Middle English word dating back to 1300–50

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

crab tree

Here and there crabs cling to the tough crab tree, whose bark has a dull gloss on it something like dark polished leather.

From Wild Life in a Southern County by Jefferies, Richard

In an aperture in the "crab tree" the guides recommend ladies to pass.

From Blacker's Art of Fly Making, &c. Comprising Angling, & Dyeing of Colours, with Engravings of Salmon & Trout Flies by Blacker, William

Like a prairie it rolls gently away, dotted with hawthorn bushes, here and there a crab tree, and two rows of noble elms, in both of which the rooks are busy in spring.

From Wild Life in a Southern County by Jefferies, Richard

The wild crab tree is the parent of most of the cultivated varieties.

From Science in the Kitchen. by Kellogg, Mrs. E. E.

What do ’e expect from a fule but folly, or a crab tree but useless fruit, or hot blood but the ways of it?

From Children of the Mist by Phillpotts, Eden