mistletoe

noun

mis·​tle·​toe ˈmi-səl-ˌtō 

 chiefly British  ˈmi-zəl-

: a European semiparasitic green shrub (Viscum album of the family Santalaceae, the sandalwood family) with thick leaves, small yellowish flowers, and waxy-white glutinous berries

broadly : any of various plants of the sandalwood family (as of an American genus Phoradendron) resembling the true mistletoe

Illustration of mistletoe

Examples of mistletoe in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The expert also found that the two songs share only five words: mistletoe, Santa Claus/Santa, snow, stocking and Christmas, according to the ruling. —Adeel Hassan, New York Times, 23 Mar. 2025

Christmas plants include numerous conifer species, poinsettia, mistletoe, and holly. —Norman Ellstrand and Nathan Ellstrand / Made By History, TIME, 23 Dec. 2024

The feel-good titles are queering the classics with familiar plot lines of house swaps, fake dates, geographically convenient mistletoe, and plenty more themes that are just fun to see play out with a contemporary and inclusive case of characters. —Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner, Vulture, 10 Dec. 2024

The island has a thing or two to teach the world about mistletoe – and resilience. —Jennifer Wolcott, The Christian Science Monitor, 19 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English mistilto, from Old English misteltān, from mistel mistletoe + tān twig; akin to Old High German & Old Saxon mistil mistletoe and to Old High German zein twig

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for mistletoe

• acknow
• aglow
• ago
• airglow
• aloe
• altho
• although
• ammo
• backflow
• backhoe
• banjo
• barbeau

Kids Definition

mistletoe

noun

mis·​tle·​toe ˈmis-əl-ˌtō 

: a European plant with yellowish flowers and waxy white berries that grows on the branches and trunks of trees

also : any of various related plants that resemble the mistletoe

Medical Definition

mistletoe

noun

mis·​tle·​toe

ˈmis-əl-ˌtō, chiefly British ˈmiz-

: any of various parasitic or semiparasitic plants (family Loranthaceae, the mistletoe family) that have thick leathery mostly opposite and sometimes scaly leaves and include some formerly used in preparations with oxytocic, antispasmodic, or heart-stimulating properties: as

a

: a European semiparasitic green shrub (Viscum album) having somewhat poisonous leaves, stems, and waxy-white glutinous berries that have been used in folk medicine

b

: any of various American plants (genus Phoradendron and especially P. serotinum synonym P. flavescens) resembling the true mistletoe of Europe