buckthorn Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a shrub or shrubby tree of the genus Rhamnus; fruits are source of yellow dyes or pigments
  2. noun any shrub or small tree of the genus Bumelia
  3. noun an Old World plantain with long narrow ribbed leaves widely established in temperate regions
    narrow-leaved plantain; English plantain; ribwort; ripple-grass; Plantago lanceolata; ribgrass.

WordNet

Buck"thorn` noun
Definitions
  1. (Bot.) A genus (Rhamnus) of shrubs or trees. The shorter branches of some species terminate in long spines or thorns. See Rhamnus.

Webster 1913