willow
/ˈwɪloʊ/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.69 in modern English
12
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
4
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
Any of various deciduous trees or shrubs in the genus Salix, in the willow family Salicaceae, found primarily on moist soils in cooler zones in the northern hemisphere.
Countable; Uncountable
verb
To form a shape or move in a way similar to the long, slender branches of a willow.
Intransitive verb
name
A female given name from English of modern usage.
Example Sentences
- "[…] and through the middle of this forest, from wall to wall, ran a winding line of brilliant green which marked the course of cottonwoods and willows."
- "And willows, willow-herb, and grass, / And meadowsweet, and haycocks dry, / No whit less still and lonely fair / Than the high cloudlets in the sky."
- "The pounded leaves of the willow, drunk in a concoction, were formerly reputed to diminish amatory desires."
- "By old age she was emaciated, the bones jutting out of her face and her figure frail as a willow branch."
- "Deep in the willow / Hidden from grace / Succumb to insecurity / Your final resting place / Crafting your perfect world, ignoring total truth / You'll die alone / There's only room for you"
- "Willowing over the rough cobbles of the little pier stepped a thin, bent figure, adorned with a silver nanny-goat's beard and bobbling eyes interrupted by the rim of a pair of pince-nez."
Etymology
From Middle English wilwe, welew, variant of wilghe, from Old English weliġ, from Proto-West Germanic *wilig, from Proto-Germanic *wiligaz, from Proto-Indo-European *welik- (compare (Arcadian) Ancient Greek ἑλίκη (helíkē), Hittite 𒌑𒂖𒆪 (welku, “grass”)), from *wel- (“twist, turn”). Cognate to West Frisian wylch and more distantly (via Proto-West Germanic *wilgijā) to Dutch wilg and German Wilge.
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈwɪloʊ/
- British English: /ˈwɪl.əʊ/