ˈhēth, in Maine & adjacent Canada ˈhāth noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English heth, heeth, from Old English hǣth; akin to Old High German heida heather, Middle High German heide heath (field), heather, Old Norse heithr field, plateau, Gothic haithi field, Old Welsh coit forest
1.
a. obsolete : any of various low-growing shrubby plants of open wastelands
b. : a plant of the family Ericaceae especially of the genera Erica and Calluna typically growing on open barren rather acid and frequently ill-drained soil
c. : any of various heathlike plants: as
(1) : poverty grass
(2) : a tamarisk ( Tamarix gallica ) that is native to Western Europe but established as an escape in parts of No. America
(3) : crowberry 1a
(4) : a desert plant that was probably the savin juniper — referring to Jer 17:6 (AV)
(5) : australian heath
2.
a. : a tract of wasteland
b. : an extensive area of rather level open uncultivated land that usually has poor coarse soil, inferior drainage, and a surface rich in peat or peaty humus and that characteristically has plants of the family Ericaceae as the dominant floral element
c. : a plant community typically occurring on heath in cool climates and being characterized by paucity or absence of trees and dominance of plants of the family Ericaceae
•
- one's native heath