Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. Any of several plants, such as a clover or wood sorrel, having compound leaves with three small leaflets, considered the national emblem of Ireland.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A plant with trifoliate leaves: the national emblem of Ireland. According to recent authority (Britten and Holland, “English Plant Names”) the plant at the present day most in repute as the true shamrock is one of the hop-clovers, Trifolium minus, a slender trailing species with small yellow beads, perhaps a, variety of T. procumbens. It is in use in many counties of Ireland, and forms a great part of the shamrock sold in London on St. Patrick's day. The black medic, Medicago lupulina, is also thus used; but the white clover, T. repens, is widely understood to be the common shamrock. The identity of the original shamrock which, according to tradition, St. Patrick used to illustrate the doctrine of the Trinity is uncertain. It has been variously supposed to be the common white clover. T. repens (which, however, is believed to be of late introduction in Ireland); the red clover, T. pratense; the wood-sorrel, Oxalis Aceto sella (locally called
shamrock in England); and even the water-cress (though its leaves are not trifoliate).
Wiktionary
- n. The trefoil leaf of any small clover, especially Trifolium repens, or such a leaf from a clover-like plant.
- n. Any of several small plants, forms of clover, with trefoil leaves, especially Trifolium repens.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. (Bot.) A trifoliate plant used as a national emblem by the Irish. The legend is that St. Patrick once plucked a leaf of it for use in illustrating the doctrine of the trinity.
WordNet 3.0
- n. Eurasian plant with heart-shaped trifoliate leaves and white purple-veined flowers
- n. creeping European clover having white to pink flowers and bright green leaves; naturalized in United States; widely grown for forage
- n. clover native to Ireland with yellowish flowers; often considered the true or original shamrock
Etymologies
- From Irish seamrog, diminutive of seamar ("clover"). (Wiktionary)
- Irish Gaelic seamróg, diminutive of seamar, clover, from Middle Irish semar. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Three men were attempting to do the Riverdance in shamrock-shaped slippers.”
The Guardian: Fancy dress and a lot of bottle at Andorra's ski party
“The shamrock is forbid by law to grow on Irish ground;”
“But the shamrock is a tender a plant, it's beauty soon will fade”
“Then you don't know why the shamrock is our national emblem?”
“For years I was lead to believe that the shamrock was a large, green 3 leaf clover, in my mind, ranging from the size of a 5c to 20c piece.”
TravelPod.com TravelStream? ? Recent Entries at TravelPod.com
“St. Patrick brought Christianity to Ireland, explaining the Holy Trinity by the shamrock, which is three persons in one God," says Byrne.”
“Just a few comments: 1. The three leaf clover you refer to is in fact 'shamrock', our national symbol.”
“A distinguished Irishman once showed me the "shamrock" he was wearing in his buttonhole as "the true" plant of that name.”
“Thus the small Lucerne clover or medicago is often sold as "shamrock" to Irish patriots, and the watercress has been solemnly pat forward as the true shamrock simply because old writers tell us, as evidence of the barbarous state of the Irish, that they fed upon shamrocks and watercress.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘shamrock’.
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LIT - Ulysses - key words and phrases
money cowrie, bedraggle, omphalos, ineluctable, postprandial, bladderwrack, modality barnacle..., loofah, shipworm, cither, embattle, Malachi and 503 more...
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Crayon Colors
This is a continuing list of Crayon Colors past and present. As I find new ones added to the "box", I will add them here as well!
black, blue, brown, apricot, bittersweet, blue green, blue violet, brick red, burnt sienna, carnation pink, cornflower, flesh and 134 more...
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Open List: Greens
A lits of greens: cooked leafy vegetables; pigments, paint names, compound words, etc; words and phrases that pertain to or contain "green". Please add your favorites!
See this list f...greenery, collard greens, mustard greens, turnip greens, green shoots, viridian green, malachite green, sap green, green grocer, radish greens, beet greens, spring green and 282 more...
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Flora
Flowers and plants have some of the most beautiful names.
These are often the common names, as opposed to the scientific or botanical names.daffodil, gardenia, tulip, snapdragon, violet, orchid, bleeding heart, daisy, lily, lilac, narcissus, rose and 278 more...
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Greens
asparagus, celadon, chartreuse, emerald, smaragdine, malachite, forest, lime, jade, myrtle, pear, olive and 12 more...
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♥
ambrosia, inamorata, gossamer, lily-white, hummingbird, roucoulement, poppy, daisy, calypso, lunula, lamb, dove and 1526 more...
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reginaterra's Words
purl, blow, squish, andean, generality, adaptation, lush, pack, filter, acquiesce, abstraction, sweet and 508 more...
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SoSheShall's list
slurp, coeur, slurple, glop, perp, fluarxx, ropechno, herrherr, burrduhherrherr, sloppy, cheezie balls, eccentric and 634 more...
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color me mauve
color words
albescent, ecru, eggshell, mauve, taupe, ochre, ashen, goldenrod, gamboge, cream, saffron, mustard and 109 more...
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Words Covered in Faery Dust (S)
words that evoke magic, mystery, mayhem, magnificence or anything else that glimmers in the grass
sabian symbols, saffron, sagacious, sage, salamander, sally lunn, salmon, salsify, salt water taffy, samhain, sand dollar, sandalwood and 270 more...
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Words I have to learn
exasperate, felony, weld, fraud, worksheet, ransom, rehearse, preliminary, offshore, parole, infamous, sieve and 436 more...
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elvesoncrack's Words
lachrymose, blustering, fjord, chihuahua, chiffon, catalytic, stile, gefilte, prosh, thwart, ralph, ickle and 379 more...
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Crayola Crayon Colors Circa 1998
almond, antique brass, apricot, aquamarine, asparagus, atomic tangerine, banana mania, beaver, bittersweet, black, blizzard blue, blue and 108 more...
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Stately Plants
The flowers and trees of states and nations.
camellia, forget-me-not, saguaro cactus, apple blossom, Calafornia poppy, Rocky Mountain, mountain laurel, peach blossom, American beauty rose, orange blossom, Cherokee rose, pua aloalo and 210 more...
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Chromonyms
These chromonyms are defined as colors in at least one dictionary (mostly MW3). (Actually there's one fake, for reasons I'll explain someday.) They are all one-word nouns such as "kelly", which can...
absinthe, acacia, acorn, alabaster, alesan, almond, aloma, amaranth, amber, amethyst, anemone, anil and 821 more...
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wordrainbow
A big list of color names for use on wordrainbow.com
emerald, cherry, coffee, cream, almond, gold, kiwi, green, grass green, aquamarine, beet red, sepia and 714 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for shamrock.
PossibleUnderscore Outrage! I demand a realrock! Jan 16, 2010
misterpolly Though not the official symbol of the Irish Republic (the Harp) a very popular symbol. Legend has it that St. Patrick used the shamrock with its three leaves on one stalk to illustrate the mystery of the Holy Trinity when he was converting the natives to Christianity. Feb 18, 2008