Crossword clues for withy
withy
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Withy \With"y\, n.; pl. Withies. [OE. withe, wipi, AS. w[=i]?ig a willow, willow twig; akin to G. weide willow, OHG. w[=i]da, Icel. v[=i]?ja, a withy, Sw. vide a willow twig, Dan. vidie a willow, osier, Gr. ?, and probably to L. vitis a vine, viere to plait, Russ. vite. [root]14
Cf. Wine, Withe.] 1. (Bot.) The osier willow ( Salix viminalis). See Osier, n. (a) .
A withe. See Withe, 1.
Withy \With"y\, a. Made of withes; like a withe; flexible and tough; also, abounding in withes.
The stream is brimful now, and lies high in this little
withy plantation.
--G. Eliot.
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
Old English wiðig "willow, willow twig," from Proto-Germanic *with- "willow" (cognates: Old Norse viðir, Danish vidje, Swedish vide, Old High German wida, German Weide "willow"), from PIE root *wei- (1) "to bend, twist" (cognates: Avestan vaeiti- "osier," Greek itea "willow," Latin vitis "vine," Lithuanian vytis "willow twig," Polish witwa, Welsh gwden "willow," Russian vitvina "branch, bough").
Wiktionary
a. (context archaic English) Flexible, like a withe. n. 1 The osier willow ((taxlink Salix viminalis species noshow=1)). 2 A long flexible twig of the osier; a withe.
WordNet
n. strong flexible twig [syn: withe]
Wikipedia
A withy or withe is a strong flexible willow stem - typically used in thatching and for gardening.
Several species and hybrid cultivars of willows (often known as osiers) are grown for withy production; typical species include Salix acutifolia, Salix daphnoides, Salix × mollissima, Salix purpurea, Salix triandra, and Salix viminalis.
The term is also sometimes used to describe any type of flexible rod used in rural crafts such as hazel or ash.
Withies traditionally serve to mark minor tidal channels in UK harbours and estuaries. In many places they remain in use and are often marked on navigation charts. At high tide the tops of a line of withies stuck in the mud on one or both sides of a channel will show above water to indicate where the deeper water lies. Note the images of international navigation-chart symbols for withies (port and starboard).
Places such as Wythenshawe and Withy Grove (both in Manchester) take their names from the willow woods and groves that grew there in earlier times. The Somerset Levels remain the only area in the UK growing basket willow commercially.
Usage examples of "withy".
He stole along under shadow of the stunted trees and withies, with bent body and gliding gait, so that from Bridgewater it would be no easy matter for the most keen-sighted to see him.
Then he let his hand fall into the strings and they fell a-tinkling sweetly, like unto the song of the winter robin, and at last he lifted his voice and sang: Still now is the stithy this morning unclouded, Nought stirs in the thorp save the yellow-haired maid A-peeling the withy last Candlemas shrouded From the mere where the moorhen now swims unafraid.
I spent alone together, for we took the train to Bournemouth and then a cab to Larkfield, so that I could fetch a trunk of clothes and personal belongings from Withy Cottage.
You pooh-poohed it when I first saw a mound that moved, and now it's withy and leaves stirring about out there.
Since the wicker rat traps and the cage to carry the ferrets wore out fast, Lael always kept a supply of withies and leather thongs on hand.
As this occurred, the willow withies that trailed like slender rain into the waters of the pool suddenly trembled.
And the women of the Weyr came every spring and fall to berry or cut withies and grasses.
Here all round the boat the withies crowded, there above in the sward lay the pile of heavy pebbles and the fallen stone.
That day Niffa set some of the withies to soak in the washtub whilst Lael inspected the traps and set the broken ones onto the table.
The ferrets, of course, offered their version of help, capturing any thong that moved, chewing on the wet withies, knocking over the traps, and chasing each other around the table.
Most of the walls appeared to be timber or planks or woven withies roughly plastered over and once painted and now faded and peeling.