Meanings
plural restharrows · alternative rest-harrow · alternative wrest-harrow
- Any of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis, especially common restharrow (Ononis repens), which has pink flowers.
Common Restharrow rises up with diverse rough, woody twigs, half a yard or a yard high, set at the joints without order [...].
1653, Nicholas Culpeper, The English Physician Enlarged, Folio Society, published 2007, page 238
Synonyms & antonyms
nounEurasian plant having loose racemes of pink or purple flowers and spiny stems and tough roots
nounEuropean woody plant having pink flowers and unifoliate leaves and long tough roots; spreads by underground runners
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
From wrest + harrow, from the idea that the plant's tough roots would stop a harrow (agricultural implement used to break up soil).
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek ὄνωνις
- ὄνωνις (ónōnis)any of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
Arabic شُبْرُق
- شُبْرُق (šubruq)any of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
Bulgarian гръмотръ́н
- гръмотръ́н (grămotrắn)any of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
Catalan gavó
- gavóany of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
Czech jehlice
- jehliceany of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
Dutch stalkruid
- stalkruidany of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
Finnish orakko, rento-orakko
- orakkoany of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
- rento-orakkoany of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
French bugrane
- bugraneany of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
German Hauhechel
- Hauhechelany of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
Hungarian iglice
- igliceany of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
Italian ononide
- ononideany of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
Polish wilżyna
- wilżynaany of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
Romanian osul-iepurelui
- osul-iepureluiany of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
Russian ста́льник
- ста́льник (stálʹnik)any of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
Scottish Gaelic sreang-bogha, sreang-thrian
- sreang-boghaany of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
- sreang-thrianany of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
Slovak ihlica
- ihlicaany of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
Turkish kayışkıran
- kayışkıranany of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
Ukrainian вовчу́г
- вовчу́г (vovčúh)any of various species of small shrubs making up the genus Ononis
Cite this entry
restharrow. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/restharrow
“restharrow.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/restharrow. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “restharrow,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/restharrow.
Source: restharrow on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.