1.
[syn: spruce grouse, Canachites canadensis]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Spruce \Spruce\ (spr[udd]s), n. [OE. Spruce or Pruse, Prussia,
Prussian. So named because it was first known as a native of
Prussia, or because its sprouts were used for making, spruce
beer. Cf. Spruce beer, below, Spruce, a.]
1. (Bot.) Any coniferous tree of the genus Picea, as the
Norway spruce (Picea excelsa), and the white and black
spruces of America (Picea alba and Picea nigra),
besides several others in the far Northwest. See Picea.
[1913 Webster]
2. The wood or timber of the spruce tree.
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3. Prussia leather; pruce. [Obs.]
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Spruce, a sort of leather corruptly so called for
Prussia leather. --E. Phillips.
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Douglas spruce (Bot.), a valuable timber tree (Pseudotsuga
Douglasii) of Northwestern America.
Essence of spruce, a thick, dark-colored, bitterish, and
acidulous liquid made by evaporating a decoction of the
young branches of spruce.
Hemlock spruce (Bot.), a graceful coniferous tree (Tsuga
Canadensis) of North America. Its timber is valuable, and
the bark is largely used in tanning leather.
Spruce beer. [G. sprossenbier; sprosse sprout, shoot (akin
to E. sprout, n.) + bier beer. The word was changed into
spruce beer because the beer came from Prussia (OE.
Spruce), or because it was made from the sprouts of the
spruce. See Sprout, n., Beer, and cf. Spruce, n.] A
kind of beer which is tinctured or flavored with spruce,
either by means of the extract or by decoction.
Spruce grouse. (Zool.) Same as Spruce partridge, below.
Spruce leather. See Spruce, n., 3.
Spruce partridge (Zool.), a handsome American grouse
(Dendragapus Canadensis) found in Canada and the
Northern United States; -- called also Canada grouse.
[1913 Webster]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
spruce grouse
n 1: North American grouse that feeds on evergreen buds and
needles [syn: spruce grouse, Canachites canadensis]