hackberry

American  

[hak-ber-ee, -buh-ree] / ˈhækˌbɛr i, -bə ri /

noun

plural

hackberries

1. any of several trees or shrubs belonging to the genus Celtis, of the elm family, bearing cherrylike fruit.

2. the sometimes edible fruit of such a tree.

3. the wood of such a tree.

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hackberry British  

/ ˈhækˌbɛrɪ /

noun

1. any American tree or shrub of the ulmaceous genus Celtis, having edible cherry-like fruits

2. the fruit or soft yellowish wood of such a tree

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Etymology

Origin of hackberry

1775–85, variant of hagberry (of Scandinavian origin)

Example Sentences

Over three decades, neighborhood foresters have transformed Dunbar Spring’s bald curbsides into lush forests of mesquite, hackberry, cholla and prickly pear cactus and more—all plants that have edible parts.

From Salon • Jan. 29, 2024

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 • Nov. 9, 2023

He gestured to a row of freshly planted hackberry trees in the old parking lane.

From Slate • Mar. 30, 2023

Cankerworm caterpillars of the hackberry leafroller moth have infested North Texas, including the Dallas-Fort Worth area, after recent rains provided conditions amenable to their life cycle.

From Washington Times • Oct. 8, 2022

But because there were so many and the drought had cut down on their normal diet of seeds and berries, the males squabbled furiously over possession of each hackberry tree.

From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly