chestnut
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈt͡ʃɛs.nʌt/
ipa: /ˈt͡ʃɛst.nʌt/
rhymes: -ɛsnʌt
rhymes: -ɛstnʌt
Forms: form: chestnuts
Etymology: Formerly chesten nut, from Middle English chesten, Middle English chesteyne, chasteine, from Old English ċisten and reinforced by Old French chastaigne, both from Latin castānea, from Ancient Greek καστάνεια (kastáneia). Latin castānea also is the ultimate source of English castanet.
Senses: synonyms: chestnut tree
glosses: A tree or shrub of the genus Castanea.
glosses: A horse-chestnut (Aesculus spp.).
glosses: A nut of such trees or shrubs or of similar ones.
glosses: A dark, reddish-brown colour, as seen on the fruit of the chestnut tree.
examples: text: Lord Carington […] led the way with his chestnuts […]
ref: 1871, Baily's Magazine of Sports & Pastimes, volume 20, page 308:
text: […] browns are the soberest, bays are the worst tempered, and chestnuts are the most foolish.
ref: 1877, George Nevile, Horses and Riding, page 105:
glosses: A reddish-brown horse.
glosses: Wood of a chestnut tree.
examples: text: Yep, this is a dance-leaning cover of the Matthew Wilder '80s pop chestnut. It has already saturated radio airwaves throughout Europe, with a number of programmers here already giving it positive feedback.
ref: 1997 May 10, Larry Flick, “Singles”, in Billboard, →ISSN, page 62:
text: Take greed. He’s been cited many times for what now has become a chestnut: “The point is, you can’t be too greedy.”
ref: 2015 August 27, Michael Signer, “What Happens When Donald Trump Stirs Up 'Passionate' Supporters”, in The Atlantic:
synonyms: cliché
platitude
glosses: An old joke; a worn-out meme, phrase, ploy, etc. so often repeated as to have grown tiresome or ineffective (often in the phrase "old chestnut").
synonyms: night eye
glosses: A round or oval horny plate found on the inner side of the leg of a horse or other animal, similar to a birthmark on a human.
Derived terms: sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Castanea dentata
word: American chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Castanospermum australe
word: Australian chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Calodendrum capense
word: Cape chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Thamnophilus palliatus
word: chestnut-backed antshrike
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Poecile rufescens
word: chestnut-backed chickadee
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
word: chestnut-bark disease
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
word: chestnut blight
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
word: chestnut canker
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Sittiparus castaneoventris
word: chestnut-bellied tit
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Lonchura castaneothorax
word: chestnut-breasted mannikin
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Coptotriche perplexa
word: chestnut clearwing moth
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
word: chestnut coal
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Emberiza fucata
word: chestnut-eared bunting
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Accipiter castanilius
word: chestnut-flanked sparrowhawk
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
word: Chestnut Hill
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
word: chestnutlike
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Lonchura atricapilla
word: chestnut munia
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Quercus montana
word: chestnut oak
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Eulabeornis castaneoventris
word: chestnut rail
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Anas castanea
word: chestnut teal
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Castanea spp.
word: chestnut tree
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
word: chestnutty
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Sterculia monosperma
word: China chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Eleocharis dulcis
word: Chinese water chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Castanea pumila
word: dwarf chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
word: earth chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Conopodium majus
word: earth-chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Castanea sativa
word: European chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
word: ground chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
word: ground-chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Aesculus spp.
word: horse chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Castanea crenata
word: Japanese chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
word: Korean chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
word: liver chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Pachira aquatica
word: Malabar chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Castanospermum australe
word: Moreton Bay chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Castanopsis spp.
word: oak chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
word: old chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Inocarpus fagifer
word: Polynesian chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
word: pull someone's chestnuts out of the fire
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
alt: Taeniocampa rubricosa
word: red chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Mesua ferrea
word: rose chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Echinoidea spp.
word: sea chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Castanea sativa
word: Spanish chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Quercus michauxii
word: swamp chestnut oak
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Castanea sativa
word: sweet chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Inocarpus fagifer
word: Tahitian chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
word: two-lined chestnut borer
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Eleocharis dulcis etc.
word: water chestnut
sense: Terms derived from chestnut (noun)
taxonomic: Quercus muhlenbergii
word: yellow chestnut oak
Related terms: castanet