Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition

Gooseberry

Goose′ber-ry

,
Noun.
;
pl.
Gooseberries
(#)
,
[Corrupted for
groseberry
or
groiseberry
, fr. OF.
groisele
, F.
groseille
, – of German origin; cf. G.
krausbeere
,
kräuselbeere
(fr.
kraus
crisp), D.
kruisbes
,
kruisbezie
(as if
crossberry
, fr.
kruis
cross; for
kroesbes
,
kroesbezie
, fr.
kroes
crisp), Sw.
krusbär
(fr.
krus
,
krusing
, crisp). The first part of the word is perh. akin to E.
curl
. Cf.
Grossular
,
Adj.
]
1.
(Bot.)
Any thorny shrub of the genus
Ribes
; also, the edible berries of such shrub. There are several species, of which
Ribes Grossularia
is the one commonly cultivated.
2.
A silly person; a goose cap.
Goldsmith.
Barbadoes gooseberry
,
a climbing prickly shrub (
Pereskia aculeata
) of the West Indies, which bears edible berries resembling gooseberries.
–
Coromandel gooseberry
.
See
Carambola
.
–
Gooseberry fool
.
See 1st
Fool
.
–
Gooseberry worm
(Zool.)
,
the larva of a small moth (
Dakruma convolutella
). It destroys the gooseberry by eating the interior.

Webster 1828 Edition

Gooseberry

GOOSEBERRY

,
Noun.
goos'berry. [L. grossula. The English word is undoubtedly corrupted from crossberry, grossberry, or gorseberry; a name taken from the roughness of the shrub. See Cross and Gross.]
The fruit of a shrub, and the shrub itself, the Ribes grossularia. The shrub is armed with spines. Of the fruit there are several varieties.
The American gooseberry belongs to the genus Melastoma, and the West Indian, gooseberry to the genus Cactus.

Similar Results