hickory

noun

hick·​o·​ry ˈhi-k(ə-)rē 

plural hickories

1

a

: any of a genus (Carya) of North American hardwood trees of the walnut family that often have sweet edible nuts

b

: the usually tough wood of a hickory

2

: a switch or cane (as of hickory wood) used especially for punishing a child

hickory adjective

Examples of hickory in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Beetles are essential decomposers in our hickory and oak boreal forests. —Markis Hill, Kansas City Star, 4 July 2025

The meat tastes of hickory and applewood, with notes of citrus and pine from the hinoki. —Jenn Harris, Los Angeles Times, 2 June 2025

Puddles offer splash landing-pads to any child in flight; display their dreams through windows into the world above: limbs and last leaves of sumac and hickory, a passing black-capped chickadee, and – down in the far blue – a blouse of cloud. —Contributing Monitor Poets, Christian Science Monitor, 23 Apr. 2025

Autumn is my favorite season in Cuyahoga Valley, as the oaks, hickories, and maples explode with fall colors. —Stephanie Vermillion, Travel + Leisure, 13 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

short for obsolete pokahickory, from Virginia Algonquian pawcohiccora food prepared from pounded nuts

First Known Use

1670, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing hickory

• shagbark hickory

Rhymes for hickory

• trickery

Kids Definition

hickory

noun

hick·​o·​ry ˈhik-(ə-)rē 

plural hickories

1

: any of a genus of North American trees related to the walnut and having an edible nut with a hard shell

2

: the usually tough pale wood of a hickory

Geographical Definition

Hickory

geographical name

Hick·​o·​ry ˈhi-kə-rē 

city in west central North Carolina population 40,010