bitternut

[ bit-er-nuht ]

noun

1. a hickory, Carya cordiformis, of the eastern and southern U.S., bearing a smooth, gray, bitter seed.

bitternut

/ ˈbɪtəˌnʌt /

noun

1. an E North American hickory tree, Carya cordiformis , with thin-shelled nuts and bitter kernels
2. the nut of this plant

Word History and Origins

Origin of bitternut¹

An Americanism dating back to 1800–10; bitter + nut

Example Sentences

Oaks and purple maples, bitternuts and striped elms.

From Literature

The nonnative trees include ponderosa pine from South Dakota and Nebraska, and bitternut hickory from southern Minnesota and Illinois.

From New York Times

Among the biggest trees in Indiana is a 155-foot-tall hickory bitternut in Perry County.

From Washington Times

This is closely allied to if not a more Southern form of our common bitternut.

From Project Gutenberg

THE bitternut hickory is a tall slender tree with broadly pyramidal crown, attaining a height of 100 feet and a diameter of 2 to 3 feet.

From Project Gutenberg