heather

plural heathers · alternative dialectal hadder · alternative obsolete hether · alternative obsolete hather

1. countableuncountableAn evergreen plant, Calluna vulgaris, with spiky leaves and small purple, pink, or white flowers.

   The cutting sides were gay with heather in bloom, and masses of dainty Scots bluebells, while patches of clear sky overhead were bringing life and colour to the sea.

   1947 January and February, O. S. Nock, “"The Aberdonian" in Wartime”, in Railway Magazine, page 9

   Synonyms: ling

2. countableuncountableA plant in the family Ericaceae.
3. countableuncountableVarious species of the genus Erica.
4. countableuncountableVarious species of the genus Cassiope.
5. countableuncountableA purple colour with a tint of pink and blue.
6. countableuncountablebusinessThe use of interwoven yarns of mixed colours to produce flecks.

alternative dialectal hadder · alternative obsolete hether · alternative obsolete hather

1. not comparableOf a purple colour with a tint of pink and blue.

plural Heathers

1. countableuncountableA female given name from English.

   "I like Hazel and Heather," Angel said, after a while. "They're both names of plants, so they sort of go with Rose." "I don't have no plant, I got a little girl," Rose Rose said, smiling.

   2001, John Irving, The Cider House Rules, Ballantine Books, →ISBN, page 506

   2 more examples

   She struck his fancy - that pretty girl with the quaint name: sweet Heather Bell, as Mr. Travers always called her. "The name was a fancy of her godfather, an eccentric bachelor," the lady explained. " She was the youngest of three daughters, and the other two were called, respectively, 'Lily' and 'Rose'. 'Call this one Heather,' said Mr. Stewart, who loved Scotland and her purple mountains, 'she will grow up like the heather, perhaps - strong, hardy, a wild flower, worth of a hundred of your garden rarities.'

   1867, J.H.Riddell, Far Above Rubies, Bernhard Tauchnitz, page 50

   “Psychotherapists are not immune to the same stereotypes that we all have, and I think they could become even more relevant for psychotherapists than for other professions [both medical and nonmedical], because they are embarking on this intimate, potentially long-term relationship with these [clients],” said Heather Kugelmass, a doctoral student in sociology at Princeton University. Kugelmass is the author of the study (PDF), which was published Wednesday in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior.

   2016 June 1, Carina Storrs, “Therapists often discriminate against black and poor patients, study finds”, in CNN

2. countableuncountableA surname from Middle English.
3. countableuncountableA village and civil parish in North West Leicestershire district, Leicestershire, England (OS grid ref SK3910).
4. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Marion County, Missouri, United States.