hackberry

noun

hack·​ber·​ry ˈhak-ˌber-ē 

: any of a genus (Celtis) of trees and shrubs of the elm family with small often edible berries

also : its wood

Examples of hackberry in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

For example, there’s a good reason that sites along streets are often planted with hackberry (Celtis occidentalis), a handsome native tree; gingko (Ginkgo biloba), an Asian species known for its golden-yellow fall color; and bald cypress (Taxodium distichum), a deciduous conifer. —Beth Botts, Chicago Tribune, 1 Feb. 2026

Other good sources of winter food for robins include wild blueberries, hackberry, American beautyberry, possumhaw, wax myrtle, and holly. —Rita Pelczar, Better Homes & Gardens, 27 Jan. 2026

Bring your binoculars and walk the trails at the Nature Conservancy’s Lafitte Woods Preserve, an oak and hackberry forest in the center of the island. —Kristy Christiansen, Southern Living, 31 Dec. 2025

These tiny insects live wherever there are hackberry trees and suck on their juices. —Eleanor Nash, Kansas City Star, 4 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

alteration of hagberry a cherry resembling the chokecherry

First Known Use

1779, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for hackberry

• askari
• astbury
• azeri
• banbury
• barberry
• blackberry
• blueberry
• canary
• cranberry
• dentary
• dewberry
• dogberry

Kids Definition

hackberry

noun

hack·​ber·​ry ˈhak-ˌber-ē 

1

: any of a genus of trees and shrubs that are related to the elms and have small often edible berries

2

: the wood of a hackberry