oak fern

noun

1. a small woodland fern, Gymnocarpium dryopteris, of northern regions, having triangular, pinnate fronds that slant horizontally.

oak fern

noun

1. a graceful light green polypody fern, Thelypteris dryopteris, having a creeping rhizome, found in acid woodlands and on rocks in the northern hemisphere

Word History and Origins

Origin of oak fern¹

1540–50; translation of Latin dryopteris < Greek dryopterís, equivalent to dryo- (combining form of drŷs oak) + ptéris fern

Example Sentences

I’ve got my hands full sifting through western hemlock and lodgepole pine, stepping over a mossy trunk trying to miss the oak fern, and peering past splayed layers of needles.

From New York Times

The delicate oak fern grows in great abundance from Eatonville to the timber line, and probably does more to beautify the woods than any other fern.

From Project Gutenberg

The outlines of the young bracken resemble the little oak fern.

From Project Gutenberg

Dryópteris, Greek for oak fern, has been chosen by Underwood and Britton and Brown and has grown in favor.

From Project Gutenberg

The parts of the oak fern develop with great regularity, each pinna, pinnule and lobe having another exactly opposite to it nearly always.

From Project Gutenberg