blackberry
n. · v.-
1 the fruit (n.) A2 Elementarya small, sweet, black or dark purple fruit that grows on a thorny bush.
the edible aggregate fruit of various species in the genus Rubus, typically turning black when ripe.
ExampleWe picked a bowl of wild blackberries to make a pie for dessert.
ExampleThe children spent the afternoon stained with the juice of wild blackberries they had scavenged from the hedgerows along the lane.
- bramble fruit
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2 the plant (n.) B1 Intermediatethe thorny bush that produces blackberries.
any of the various perennial, usually thorny, shrubs of the genus Rubus.
ExampleThe garden was overgrown with blackberry bushes that scratched our legs.
ExampleThe invasive blackberry had completely choked the native flora, its resilient canes forming an impenetrable wall of thorns across the abandoned pasture.
- bramble
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3 the mobile device (n.) B2 Upper Intermediate Computinga brand of mobile phone with a small keyboard that was very popular in the 2000s.
a line of smartphones and tablets originally known for their physical QWERTY keyboards and secure push email capabilities.
ExampleBefore the iPhone became popular, many business people used a BlackBerry.
ExampleThe executive was famously inseparable from his BlackBerry, constantly responding to emails via the device's signature tactile keyboard during the morning commute.
- smartphone
- PDA
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4 to gather fruit (v.) B2 Upper Intermediateto go out and look for blackberries to pick.
to forage for or harvest blackberries in the wild.
ExampleEvery September, the family goes blackberrying in the nearby woods.
ExampleThe villagers would traditionally go blackberrying in late summer, filling wicker baskets with the fruit before the first frosts arrived.
From Middle English blakberie, blakeberie (“brambleberry”), from Old English blacu berġe, blæcberġe (attested in plural blaca berġan, equivalent to black + berry.