Chesteyne

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An old variant spelling of chestnut, referring to the large tree or to its edible brown nut
2. A historical form of the word for the nut-bearing tree or the glossy reddish-brown nut it produces
3. An archaic way of writing the name of the chestnut tree or its sweet, roastable seed

Etymology: "Chesteyne" is a Middle English form of the word we now spell "chestnut." It came into English through Old French "chastaigne," which descends from Latin "castanea." The Latin was borrowed from Greek "kastanea," and the Greek name for the tree is traditionally linked to Kastana, a town in Pontus on the Black Sea. That link is uncertain, since the word may have come from a non-Greek language of the region.

Synonyms: chestnut