Brushwood

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈbɹʌʃˌwʊd/

Definitions

1. Dense growth of small trees, shrubs, and branches or the tangled mass of branches and twigs collectively gathered from such vegetation
2. A type of vegetation consisting of small trees and shrubs, often forming dense growth, as well as a collection of twigs and branches gathered from such plants
3. Small, dense plants and shrubs characterized by their woody stems, together with a mass of branches and twigs collected from these growths

Etymology: "Brushwood" is a plain compound: "brush" joined to "wood". The first element is the older and more interesting one. "Brush" comes from Middle English "brushe", which named the bristly undergrowth and scrubby thickets of a forest, long before it meant a tool for sweeping or grooming. Its ultimate origin is uncertain, though it is related to the verb "brush" in the sense of breaking through or rubbing against something. "Wood" is the older Germanic word, from Old English "wudu", meaning a forest or a tree-covered area as well as the material. Put together, "brushwood" originally named the low tangle of shrubs and young growth that filled the gaps between mature trees, and the sense of gathered cut twigs for fuel grew naturally from that.

Synonyms: underbrush, scrub, thicket, brush