I. ˈberē, -ri; in compounds in which a stressed syllable immediately precedes, _b(ə)rē or _b(ə)ri is usual in Brit speech and is used by some US speakers especially in compounds that are well known and that are in attrib position (as in “strawberry jam”); in compounds in which an unstressed syllable immediately precedes (as “huckleberry”), this pronunc is less freq in Brit speech and is little heard in US speech noun
( -es )
Etymology: Middle English berye, from Old English berie; akin to Old High German beri berry, Old Norse ber, Gothic weina basi grape
1.
a. : a pulpy and usually edible fruit of small size irrespective of its structure (as the strawberry, raspberry, checkerberry, and hip of the rose)
b. dialect Britain : gooseberry
c. : any simple fruit that has a pulpy or fleshy pericarp (as the currant, grape, gooseberry, cranberry, tomato, or banana)
d. : the dry seed or kernel of certain plants
a coffee berry
a wheat berry
2. : one of the eggs of a fish or lobster
3. : the black knob on the bill of the mute swan
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- in berry
II. ˈberē, -ri intransitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-es )
1. : to bear or produce berries
a berrying shrub
2. : to gather berries : pick berries