brier : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: brier	by the DICT Development Group
4 results for brier
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
brier n tangled mass of prickly plants [syn: brier, brierpatch, brier patch] a thorny stem or twig Eurasian rose with prickly stems and fragrant leaves and bright pink flowers followed by scarlet hips Synonym(s): sweetbrier, sweetbriar, brier, briar, eglantine, Rosa eglanteria a very prickly woody vine of the eastern United States growing in tangled masses having tough round stems with shiny leathery leaves and small greenish flowers followed by clusters of inedible shiny black berries Synonym(s): bullbrier, greenbrier, catbrier, horse brier, horse-brier, brier, briar, Smilax rotundifolia evergreen treelike Mediterranean shrub having fragrant white flowers in large terminal panicles and hard woody roots used to make tobacco pipes Synonym(s): tree heath, briar, brier, Erica arborea
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Brier \Bri"er\, Briar \Bri"ar\, n. [OE. brere, brer, AS. br[c7]r, br[91]r; cf. Ir. briar prickle, thorn, brier, pin, Gael. preas bush, brier, W. prys, prysg.] 1. A plant with a slender woody stem bearing stout prickles; especially, species of {Rosa}, {Rubus}, and {Smilax}. 2. Fig.: Anything sharp or unpleasant to the feelings. The thorns and briers of reproof. --Cowper. {Brier root}, the root of the southern {Smilax laurifolia} and {S. Walteri}; -- used for tobacco pipes. {Cat brier}, {Green brier}, several species of Smilax ({S. rotundifolia}, etc.) {Sweet brier} ({Rosa rubiginosa}). See {Sweetbrier}. {Yellow brier}, the {Rosa Eglantina}.
From U.S. Gazetteer (1990) [gazetteer]:
Brier, WA (city, FIPS 7940) Location: 47.79250 N, 122.27169 W Population (1990): 5633 (1822 housing units) Area: 5.5 sq km (land), 0.0 sq km (water) Zip code(s): 98036
From Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary [easton]:
Brier This word occurs frequently, and is the translation of several different terms. (1.) Micah 7:4, it denotes a species of thorn shrub used for hedges. In Prov. 15:19 the word is rendered "thorn" (Heb. _hedek_, "stinging"), supposed by some to be what is called the "apple of Sodom" (q.v.). (2.) Ezek. 28:24, _sallon'_, properly a "prickle," such as is found on the shoots of the palm tree. (3.) Isa. 55:13, probably simply a thorny bush. Some, following the Vulgate Version, regard it as the "nettle." (4.) Isa. 5:6; 7:23-25, etc., frequently used to denote thorny shrubs in general. In 10:17; 27:4, it means troublesome men. (5.) In Heb. 6:8 the Greek word (tribolos) so rendered means "three-pronged," and denotes the land caltrop, a low throny shrub resembling in its spikes the military "crow-foot." Comp. Matt. 7:16, "thistle."