Osage orange

noun

1. Also called bois d'arc, bowwood. a tree, Maclura pomifera, of the mulberry family, native to the south-central U.S., having hard, yellowish wood and often cultivated for hedges.
2. the round, rough-skinned, inedible fruit of this tree.

Osage orange

noun

1. a North American moraceous tree, Maclura pomifera, grown for hedges and ornament
2. the warty orange-like fruit of this plant

Word History and Origins

Origin of Osage orange¹

First recorded in 1810–20

Example Sentences

She also uses offcuts from her shop mate’s custom furnishings as well as Osage orange from her grandparents’ farm and black walnut from downed trees in Bloomington.

From Los Angeles Times

She also uses offcuts from her shop mate’s custom furnishings as well as Osage orange from her grandparents’ farm and black walnut from downed trees in Bloomington.

From Los Angeles Times

Osage orange, redbud and sugar maple tree branches wove together overhead, forming a dense, knotty canopy that broke every few miles to reveal stretching bluegrass pastures.

From Salon

“Thank you!’’ wrote a user who goes by jennieo to someone who identified a light-green, softball-size fruit as an Osage orange.

From New York Times

That’s how Orange Mound, which took its name from the osage orange bushes that grew on its eastern edge, became the first subdivision in the country designed specifically for Black buyers, who hurried to put 50 cents down on $40 lots.

From New York Times