birch

Etymology

From Middle English birche, birk, from Old English birċe, bierċe, from Proto-Germanic *birkijǭ (compare West Frisian bjirk, German Birke), variant of *berkō (compare Dutch berk, Swedish björk, Norwegian bjørk), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰerHǵs, *bʰerHǵos (compare Lithuanian béržas, Czech bříza, Ossetian бӕрз (bærz), Russian берёза (berjóza)). Compare distant cognate Latin fraxinus (“ash tree, ash javelin”).

Pronunciation

• (General American) enPR: bû(r)ch, IPA^(key): /bɝtʃ/
• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: bû(r)ch, IPA^(key): /bɜːtʃ/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)tʃ

Noun

birch (countable and uncountable, plural birches)

1. Any of various trees of the genus Betula, native to countries in the Northern Hemisphere.
2. A hard wood taken from the birch tree, typically used to make furniture.
3. A stick, rod or bundle of twigs made from birch wood, used for punishment.
4. A birch-bark canoe.

Verb

birch (third-person singular simple present birches, present participle birching, simple past and past participle birched)

1. to punish with a stick, bundle of twigs, or rod made of birch wood.
2. to punish as though one were using a stick, bundle of twigs, or rod made of birch wood.