woodbine

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   British: honeysuckle, especially the fragrant climbing species Lonicera periclymenum

   A flowering woodbine climbed around the ruined garden arch.

2. 2
   noun

   North American: Virginia creeper or another climbing vine

   Woodbine spread across the wall and turned crimson in autumn.

From Middle English wodebynd, inherited from Old English wudubinde, literally 'wood-binder.' The second element is bine, an old word for a flexible climbing stem. The name was applied to vines that bind themselves around woodland plants, especially honeysuckle in Britain and Virginia creeper in North America.

Topics

External links

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• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary