manzanita Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun chiefly evergreen shrubs of warm dry areas of western North America
  2. noun evergreen tree of the Pacific coast of North America having glossy leathery leaves and orange-red edible berries; wood used for furniture and bark for tanning
    madrono; Arbutus menziesii; madrona.

WordNet

Man`za*ni"ta noun
Etymology
Sp., dim. of munzana an apple.
Definitions
  1. (Bot.) A name given to several species of Arctostaphylos, but mostly to A. glauca and A. pungens, shrubs of California, Oregon, etc., with reddish smooth bark, ovate or oval coriaceous evergreen leaves, and bearing clusters of red berries, which are said to be a favorite food of the grizzly bear.

Webster 1913