Meanings
plural hagberries
- Prunus padus, a species of cherry native to northern Europe and northern Asia, the bird cherry.
- Its bittersweet astringent fruit, readily eaten by birds.
Synonyms: bird cherry, hag, hackberry
Synonyms & antonyms
nounIts bittersweet astringent fruit, readily eaten by birds.
Origin
From hag + berry. According to Some Folklore of Trees, Animals, and River-fishing from the N.E. of Scotland, "The wood of the 'hackberry' or bird-cherry (Prunus padus) is not used as a staff or for any other purpose, as it is looked on as the witch's tree."
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
hagberry. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hagberry
“hagberry.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hagberry. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “hagberry,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hagberry.
Source: hagberry on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.