hickory

¹

[ hik-uh-ree, hik-ree ]

noun

, plural hick·o·ries.

1. any of several North American trees belonging to the genus Carya, of the walnut family, certain species of which bear edible nuts or yield a valuable wood. Compare pecan, shagbark.
2. the wood of any of these trees.
3. a switch, stick, etc., of this wood.
4. Baseball Slang. a baseball bat.
5. Also called hickory cloth,. a strong fabric of twill construction, used chiefly in the manufacture of work clothes.

Hickory

²

[ hik-uh-ree, hik-ree ]

noun

1. a city in W North Carolina.

hickory

/ ˈhɪkərɪ /

noun

1. any juglandaceous tree of the chiefly North American genus Carya, having nuts with edible kernels and hard smooth shells See also pecan pignut bitternut shagbark
2. the hard tough wood of any of these trees
3. the nut of any of these trees
4. a switch or cane made of hickory wood

Word History and Origins

Origin of hickory¹

First recorded in 1610–20, Americanism; earlier pohickery, from Virginia Algonquian ( English spelling) pocohiquara, the name of a milky drink prepared from hickory nuts

Word History and Origins

Origin of hickory¹

C17: from earlier pohickery, from Algonquian pawcohiccora food made from ground hickory nuts

Example Sentences

What was this dish that had vaulted over Moon Pies, the hickory smoked barbecue of Memphis and Nashville’s hot chicken?

From New York Times

In his tours of the island he had found acorns and hickory nuts and also wild sunflowers full of seed.

From Literature

His men said Jackson was as tall and tough as an iron-hard hickory tree.

From Literature

The Haudenosaunee Confederacy, composed of U.S and Canadian communities, first played lacrosse on wide-open stretches of land, using sticks fashioned from hickory and catgut.

From Los Angeles Times

Here grow maple, oak, hickory, cottonwood, sycamore, river birch, hackberry, fronds bowed under climbing English ivy, with winter creeper spreading underfoot.

From New York Times

Related Words

• business
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