willow
Other forms: willows
A willow is a tree with long, flexible branches and very small leaves. If you're looking for a picnic spot, the wide, green canopy of a willow provides great shade on a hot summer day.
Most willow trees grow near water or in damp locations, as their roots soak up great quantities of moisture and can be used to protect the banks of rivers and streams from erosion. Willow branches are also commonly woven together to make baskets. A "weeping willow" has distinctive, graceful branches that curve down toward the ground.
Definitions of willow
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any of numerous deciduous trees and shrubs of the genus Salix
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synonyms:
willow tree
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types:
- show 29 types...
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osier
any of various willows having pliable twigs used in basketry and furniture
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Huntingdon willow, Salix alba, white willow
large willow tree of Eurasia and North Africa having greyish canescent leaves and grey bark
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Salix alba sericea, Salix sericea, silky willow, silver willow
North American willow with greyish silky pubescent leaves that usually blacken in drying
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Salix alba caerulea, cricket-bat willow
Eurasian willow tree having greyish leaves and ascending branches
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Salix arctica, arctic willow
low creeping shrub of Arctic Europe and America
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Babylonian weeping willow, Salix babylonica, weeping willow
willow with long drooping branches and slender leaves native to China; widely cultivated as an ornamental
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Salix blanda, Salix pendulina, Salix pendulina blanda, Wisconsin weeping willow
hybrid willow usually not strongly weeping in habit
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Salix discolor, pussy willow
small willow of eastern North America having greyish leaves and silky catkins that come before the leaves
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sallow
any of several Old World shrubby broad-leaved willows having large catkins; some are important sources for tanbark and charcoal
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Salix amygdaloides, almond-leaves willow, peach-leaved willow, peachleaf willow
willow of the western United States with leaves like those of peach or almond trees
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Salix candida, hoary willow, sage willow
North American shrub with whitish canescent leaves
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Salix fragilis, brittle willow, crack willow, snap willow
large willow tree with stiff branches that are easily broken
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Salix humilis, prairie willow
slender shrubby willow of dry areas of North America
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Salix herbacea, dwarf willow
widely distributed boreal shrubby willow with partially underground creeping stems and bright green glossy leaves
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Salix cinerea, gray willow, grey willow
Eurasian shrubby willow with whitish tomentose twigs
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Salix lasiolepis, arroyo willow
shrubby willow of the western United States
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Salix lucida, shining willow
common North American shrub with shiny lanceolate leaves
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Salix nigra, black willow, swamp willow
North American shrubby willow having dark bark and linear leaves growing close to streams and lakes
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Salix pentandra, bay willow, laurel willow
European willow tree with shining leathery leaves; widely naturalized in the eastern United States
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Salix pyrifolia, balsam willow
small shrubby tree of eastern North America having leaves exuding an odor of balsam when crushed
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Salix repens, creeping willow
small trailing bush of Europe and Asia having straggling branches with silky green leaves of which several varieties are cultivated
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Salix sitchensis, Sitka willow, silky willow
small shrubby tree of western North America (Alaska to Oregon)
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Salix tristis, dwarf gray willow, dwarf grey willow, sage willow
willow shrub of dry places in the eastern United States having long narrow leaves canescent beneath
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Salix uva-ursi, bearberry willow
dwarf prostrate mat-forming shrub of Arctic and alpine regions of North America and Greenland having deep green elliptic leaves that taper toward the base
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Salix alba vitellina, Salix vitellina, golden willow
European willow having greyish leaves and yellow-orange twigs used in basketry
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Salix caprea, florist's willow, goat willow, pussy willow
much-branched Old World willow having large catkins and relatively large broad leaves
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Salix amygdalina, Salix triandra, almond willow, black Hollander
Old World willow with light green leaves cultivated for use in basketry
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Salix purpurea, basket willow, purple osier, purple willow, red osier, red willow
Eurasian osier having reddish or purple twigs and bark rich in tannin
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Salix viminalis, common osier, hemp willow, velvet osier
willow with long flexible twigs used in basketry
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type of:
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tree
a tall perennial woody plant having a main trunk and branches forming a distinct elevated crown; includes both gymnosperms and angiosperms
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a textile machine having a system of revolving spikes for opening and cleaning raw textile fibers
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type of:
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textile machine
a machine for making textiles
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textile machine
Pronunciation
US
/ˈwɪloʊ/
UK
/ˈwɪləʊ/
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