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briar

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bri⋅ar

1  [brahy-er]
Use briar in a Sentence
–noun
brier 1 .
Related forms:
bri⋅ar⋅y, adjective
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bri⋅ar

2  [brahy-er]
–noun
brier 2 .

bri⋅er

1  [brahy-er]
–noun
1. a prickly plant or shrub, esp. the sweetbrier or a greenbrier.
2. a tangled mass of prickly plants.
3. a thorny stem or twig.
Also, briar.

Origin:
bef. 1000; ME brer, OE brǣr, brēr; akin to bramble

Related forms:
bri⋅er⋅y, adjective

bri⋅er

2  [brahy-er]
–noun
1. the white heath, Erica arborea, of France and Corsica, the woody root of which is used for making tobacco pipes.
2. a pipe made of brierroot.
Also, briar.

Origin:
1865–70; earlier bruyer < F bruyère, OF < Gallo-Latin *brūcāria field of heather, equiv to *brūc- heather (< Gaulish, perh. *broiko- (with early L change of oi > ū) < Celtic *wroiko- > OIr froech, Welsh grug) + L -āria -ary; cf. early ML brucus, brugaria; see -er 2 , -ar 2
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To briar
bri·ar 1 also bri·er   (brī'ər)   
n.  

  1. A Mediterranean shrub or small tree (Erica arborea) whose hard, woody roots are used to make tobacco pipes.

  2. A pipe made from the root of this plant or from a similar wood.


[French bruyère, heath, from Old French, from Vulgar Latin *brūcāria, from Late Latin brūcus, heather, of Celtic origin; see wer-2 in Indo-European roots.]
bri·ar 2   (brī'ər)   
n.  Variant of brier1.
bri·er 1 also bri·ar   (brī'ər)   
n.  Any of several prickly plants, such as certain rosebushes or the greenbrier.

[Middle English brer, from Old English brēr.]
bri'er·y adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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