tussock

American  

[tuhs-uhk] / ˈtʌs ək /

noun

1. a tuft or clump of growing grass or the like.

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tussock British  

/ ˈtʌsək /

noun

1. a dense tuft of vegetation, esp of grass

2. 1. short for tussock grass

   2. country where tussock grass grows

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• tussocked
  adjective
• tussocky
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of tussock

1540–50; apparently akin to Middle High German zūsach thicket, derivative of zūse lock (of hair), brushwood. See -ock

Explanation

A tussock is a clump or tuft of something, like the tussock of grass at the top of a hill. Your grandpa might have an entirely bald head except for the tussock of gray on top of it, and your yard might consist of dandelions and one tussock of tall grass. It's most common to use this noun, in fact, for grass that sprouts taller than the surrounding growth. When tussock was originally used, in the 1540s, it meant "a tuft of hair." Its origin is uncertain.

Example Sentences

The tahr’s significant weight and solid hooves are destroying precious snow tussock in sub-alpine regions.

From The Guardian • Feb. 25, 2020

These critters will disappear as the weather gets colder, as white hickory tussock moth caterpillars spend the winter in cocoons, according to the University of Wisconsin.

From Fox News • Nov. 1, 2018

The endemic Cobb’s wren hides in the towering tussock grass.

From Washington Post • Sep. 1, 2016

They said the word may have come from a colloquial name for a type of tussock known as makura, or pukio in te reo in the Maori language.

From BBC • Oct. 23, 2015

They sailed ahead and by three o’clock could make out the faint patches of green tussock grass that grew among the snowy rocks.

From "Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World" by Jennifer Armstrong