Catbrier

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A prickly climbing plant from the Smilax family, it features dense thorns and produces clusters of small, often edible berries
2. A thorny vine belonging to the Smilax genus, recognized for its robust prickles and clusters of small berries, some of which can be eaten
3. This climbing plant, classified under the Smilax family, is characterized by its sharp thorns and produces small berries that may be edible

Etymology: Catbrier is an American name for the greenbrier, a climbing shrub of the genus Smilax, and the name is a compound of "cat" and "brier." A brier is an old English word for a thorny bramble, and the plant's prickly, tangling stems make the second half of the name obvious. The first half is less obvious: the name is usually explained by the plant's habit of snagging and scratching passing animals, as a cat's claws do, though the connection is a folk explanation rather than something the record confirms. The plant itself is often called greenbrier, a name that combines "green," describing its evergreen foliage, with "brier." Catbrier and greenbrier are therefore two names for the same thing, and the choice between them has mostly been a regional matter, with catbrier turning up more often in some parts of the United States than in others.

Synonyms: greenbriar