acorn

\ ˈā-ˌkȯrn

How to pronounce acorn (audio)

, -kərn

How to pronounce acorn (audio)

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Definition of acorn

: the nut of the oak usually seated in or surrounded by a hard woody cupule of indurated bracts

Examples of acorn in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Available in two colors (black or acorn), the Kate bag's structured silhouette is ideal for both dumping daily essentials and carrying on-the-go. — Melissa Lee, USA TODAY, "Rebecca Minkoff is having a huge sample sale—and it's up to 75% off," 26 June 2020 Three Squirrels sold 800,000 sets of assorts nuts — macadamia, cashews, sunflower seeds and acorns — by cutting the price from $7 to $4. — Washington Post, "Chinese online shoppers shatter Cyber Monday records on ‘Double 11’," 11 Nov. 2019 The History The Ohlone Indians lived in what is now Alameda, eating acorns and oysters until the Spanish arrived in the 1700s and forced them to relinquish their culture. — Carol Pogash, New York Times, "Alameda, Calif.: On San Francisco Bay, With Great Views and Rising Prices," 10 Mar. 2020 Clusters of acorns and hickory nuts, washed down from the ridgelines by recent hard rains, can be seen in all directions. — Colin Moore, Outdoor Life, "Hunting With Dogs is the Best Way to Bag Late-Winter Squirrels," 15 Jan. 2020 The pigs are raised on a mostly cereal diet, and some acorns consumed during a pasturing period. — Dallas News, "Throw a wine and jamon pairing at home with takeout from Enrique Tomas and some stunning wines," 15 May 2020 Fleabag's annoying husband Brett Gelman plays the part of the acorn in the reenactment. — Omar Sanchez, EW.com, "The wildest celebrity acid trip stories in Have a Good Trip," 13 May 2020 Also in the new galleries is a 17th-century staircase with elaborate carvings of pine cones, oak leaves and acorns. — James Barron, New York Times, "Ah, Tea. So Relaxing. But Its History Is Another Story.," 8 Mar. 2020 Food was short and Nihei found the powdered acorns mixed with water and grains that were available to eat difficult to stomach. — Brad Lendon And Emiko Jozuka, CNN, "History's deadliest air raid happened in Tokyo during World War II and you've probably never heard of it," 7 Mar. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'acorn.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for acorn

Middle English akorn, akkorn (partially assimilated to corn "kernel, corn entry 1"), hakerne, accherne, accharne, going back to Old English æcern, going back to Germanic *akrana- (whence also Middle High German ackeran "tree nuts," Old Norse akarn, Gothic akran "fruit, produce"); akin to Old Irish írne "sloe, kernel," Welsh eirin "plums, sloes," aeron "fruits, berries," going back to Celtic *agrinyo-, *agranyo-; perhaps further akin to a Balto-Slavic word with an initial long vowel (Old Church Slavic agoda "fruit," Polish jagoda "berry," Lithuanian úoga)

Note: Taken to be a derivative of Indo-European *h₂eǵros "uncultivated field, pasture" (see acre), though this would seem to exclude the Balto-Slavic etymon, which lacks the suffix, from consideration. It is also not clear if fields, uncultivated or not, are the source of wild tree nuts.

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Last Updated

7 Jul 2020

Cite this Entry

“Acorn.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/acorn. Accessed 10 Jul. 2020.

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