/kran"ber'ee, -beuh ree/ , n. , pl. cranberries .
1. the red, acid fruit or berry of certain plants of the genus Vaccinium, of the heath family, as V. macrocarpon (large cranberry or American cranberry) or V. oxycoccus (small cranberry or European cranberry) , used in making sauce, relish, jelly, or juice.
2. the plant itself, growing wild in bogs or cultivated in acid soils, esp. in the northeastern U.S.
[ 1640-50, Amer.; kraanbere. See CRANE, BERRY ]