pignut
pignut Lexical Profile
pignut Game Scores & Validity
• noun
British The small, brown, chestnut-flavored edible underground tuber of a European woodland plant in the carrot family (Conopodium majus), traditionally foraged as a wild root vegetable.
"The foragers carefully dug around the delicate stems to unearth the sweet, crunchy pignut without snapping the root."
North American A common deciduous North American hickory tree (Carya glabra) valued for its tough, heavy wood and producing small, thin-husked, often astringent nuts eaten by wildlife and livestock.
"The carpenter preferred timber from the pignut for crafting durable tool handles and wagon wheels."
British A slender perennial European herb of the family Apiaceae (Conopodium majus) having finely divided feathery leaves, flat clusters of tiny white flowers, and an edible subterranean tuber.
"In late spring, the shady floor of the ancient oak wood was dotted with the lacy white umbels of wild pignut."
North American The small, pear-shaped, thin-shelled nut of the pignut hickory tree (Carya glabra), which has a bitter or mildly sweet kernel primarily consumed by squirrels, deer, and hogs.
"Autumn winds shook the canopy, scattering dozens of hard-shelled pignuts across the forest trail."
Word Origin & Etymology
Formed in the 16th century as a compound of 'pig' and 'nut', originally referring to the underground tubers of the European plant Conopodium majus, which were eagerly rooted up by swine, and later applied by American colonists to a species of hickory whose small, bitter nuts were fed to hogs.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.