bracken
/ˈbrak(ə)n
/noun [mass noun]
1A tall fern with coarse lobed fronds, which occurs worldwide and can cover large areas.
- Pteridium aquilinum, family Dennstaedtiaceae (or Hypolepidaceae).
- Penn Common is a rolling meadow of tall bracken, moss and the odd thicket of birch trees.
- With Ian massaging his arm, John collecting handfuls of stones to throw at the snake and Tim stripping the leaflets from a frond of bracken, they made their way through the undergrowth to the small pond.
1.1 informal Any large coarse fern resembling bracken.Many ferns, such as false bracken, leather fern and Pteris cretica, are drought-tolerant once established.
Origin
Middle English: of Scandinavian origin; related to Danish bregne, Swedish bräken.