blackberry
UK[ˈblækbəri]US[ˈblækberi]
n
a small, soft, dark purple fruit that grows on a bush with thorns
n
the bush on which this fruit grows
Morpheme Breakdown
black
berry
black
dark color
berry
small fruit
Etymology
the word 'blackberry' is a transparent compound formed from two old english roots. 'black' originates from proto-germanic blakaz, meaning 'burned', which evolved to denote the darkest color. 'berry' descends from proto-germanic bazją, a general term for a small, pulpy fruit. the compound simply and logically describes the fruit by its characteristic dark, nearly black color when ripe, distinguishing it from other berries like the red strawberry or the blue blueberry. this descriptive naming convention is common in english for flora and fauna.
Analysis
Structure: black (dark color) + berry (small fruit)
'black' is from old english 'blæc', meaning 'dark, ink'. 'berry' is from old english 'berie', meaning 'small, soft fruit'.
Examples
she went foraging and returned with a basket full of wild blackberries.
the blackberry brambles had grown thick and tangled along the fence line.
he made a delicious blackberry jam from the fruit he picked.