Will-o'-the-wisp to Wind
Will-o'-the-wisp
(Will"-o'-the-wisp`) n. See Ignis fatuus.
Willow
(Wil"low) n. [OE. wilowe, wilwe, AS. wilig, welig; akin to OD. wilge, D. wilg, LG. wilge. Cf.
Willy.]
1. (Bot.) Any tree or shrub of the genus Salix, including many species, most of which are characterized
often used as an emblem of sorrow, desolation, or desertion. "A wreath of willow to show my forsaken
plight." Sir W. Scott. Hence, a lover forsaken by, or having lost, the person beloved, is said to wear the
willow.
And I must wear the willow garland
For him that's dead or false to me.
Campbell. 2. (Textile Manuf.) A machine in which cotton or wool is opened and cleansed by the action of long
spikes projecting from a drum which revolves within a box studded with similar spikes; — probably so
called from having been originally a cylindrical cage made of willow rods, though some derive the term
from winnow, as denoting the winnowing, or cleansing, action of the machine. Called also willy, twilly,
twilly devil, and devil.
Almond willow, Pussy willow, Weeping willow. (Bot.) See under Almond, Pussy, and Weeping.
— Willow biter (Zoöl.) the blue tit. [Prov. Eng.] — Willow fly (Zoöl.), a greenish European stone fly
(Chloroperla viridis); — called also yellow Sally. — Willow gall (Zoöl.), a conical, scaly gall produced
on willows by the larva of a small dipterous fly — Willow grouse (Zoöl.), the white ptarmigan. See
ptarmigan. — Willow lark (Zoöl.), the sedge warbler. [Prov. Eng.] — Willow ptarmigan (Zoöl.) (a)
The European reed bunting, or black-headed bunting. See under Reed. (b) A sparrow (Passer salicicolus)
native of Asia, Africa, and Southern Europe. — Willow tea, the prepared leaves of a species of willow
largely grown in the neighborhood of Shanghai, extensively used by the poorer classes of Chinese as a
substitute for tea. McElrath. — Willow thrush (Zoöl.), a variety of the veery, or Wilson's thrush. See
Veery. — Willow warbler (Zoöl.), a very small European warbler (Phylloscopus trochilus); — called
also bee bird, haybird, golden wren, pettychaps, sweet William, Tom Thumb, and willow wren.
Willow
(Wil"low) v. t. To open and cleanse, as cotton, flax, or wool, by means of a willow. See Willow,
n., 2.
Willowed
(Wil"lowed) a. Abounding with willows; containing willows; covered or overgrown with willows.
"Willowed meads." Collins.
Willower
(Wil"low*er) n. A willow. See Willow, n., 2.
Willow-herb
(Wil"low-herb`) n. (Bot.) A perennial herb (Epilobium spicatum) with narrow willowlike
leaves and showy rose-purple flowers. The name is sometimes made to include other species of the
same genus.
Spiked willow-herb, a perennial herb (Lythrum Salicaria) with willowy leaves and spiked purplish flowers.
Willowish
(Wil"low*ish), a. Having the color of the willow; resembling the willow; willowy. Walton.
Willow-thorn
(Wil"low-thorn`) n. (Bot.) A thorny European shrub (Hippophaë rhamnoides) resembling a
willow.
Willow-weed
(Wil"low-weed`) n. (Bot.) (a) A European species of loosestrife (Lysimachia vulgaris).
(b) Any kind of Polygonum with willowlike foliage.
Willow-wort
(Wil"low-wort`) n. (Bot.) (a) Same as Willow-weed. (b) Any plant of the order Salicaceæ,
or the Willow family.
Willowy
(Wil"low*y) a.
