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Glite Dictionary
pear haw

pear haw

9.9
A small tree with few thorns that has pear-shaped berries
  • noun
  • /pɛr hɔ/
  • US
translation icon : espino peral
  • The pear haw produces pear-shaped berries that are popular with local wildlife.

Examples

  • Unlike some other hawthorns, the pear haw has very few thorns and is easier to handle.

  • We planted a pear haw in the backyard to attract birds and pollinators.

  • The pear haw is a native plant admired for its ornamental berries in autumn.

  • The pear haw tree blooms beautifully in spring.

  • Many gardeners love the pear haw for its unique berries.

  • In our garden, the pear haw stands out with its beautiful white flowers in spring.

  • We enjoy watching the birds feed on the bright berries of the pear haw during the fall.

Synonyms

pear hawthorn
vspear haw
  • US
9.9

A North American tree or bush with few thorns and pear-shaped berries

is the same plant but uses a different common name
Crataegus calpodendron
vspear haw
  • Specialized
9.9

A North American hawthorn tree or shrub with upright branches, almost no thorns, and pear-shaped berries

is the same species but presented by its scientific name

Surface Forms

pear haw singular
pear haws plural

Morphology

pear + haw

The compound combines 'pear' (indicating pear-shaped or related to pear) with 'haw' (a hawthorn shrub), so the sense 'a hawthorn that produces pear-shaped berries' is directly inferable from the constituents. Noun–noun compounding with a descriptive first element is a common, cross-linguistic pattern, making this meaning transparent to a B1 learner who knows both words.

Etymology

Pear haw may come from a simple picture: this hawthorn makes small berries that look like tiny pears, so people put pear and haw together to name the plant. That's why the name points to a hawthorn with pear-shaped fruit and often few thorns.