What does "hazel" mean?
A tree or shrub of the genus Corylus, bearing edible nuts called hazelnuts or filberts.
Hazel
/ˈheɪzəl/ adj, name, noun
adj, name, noun ·Moderate ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A tree or shrub of the genus Corylus, bearing edible nuts called hazelnuts or filberts.
- Grammar: hazel is listed as adj, name, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: hazelnut, beige, brown, brownish.
- Useful contrasts: colorless, evergreen, monochrome.
- Usage evidence: Witch hazel tightens pores without drying skin.
How to use "hazel"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "hazel" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "hazel" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "hazel" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "hazel" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "hazel" is acting as adj, name, noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "hazelnut" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "hazel", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A tree or shrub of the genus Corylus, bearing edible nuts called hazelnuts or filberts. countable, usually
"The green turf was velvet underfoot. The blackbirds fluted in the hazels there."
- 2 a shade of brown that is yellowish or reddish; it is a greenish shade of brown when used to describe the color of someone's eyes wordnet
- 3 The nut of the hazel tree. countable, usually
- 4 any of several shrubs or small trees of the genus Corylus bearing edible nuts enclosed in a leafy husk wordnet
- 5 The wood of a hazelnut tree. uncountable, usually
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 the fine-grained wood of a hazelnut tree (genus Corylus) and the hazel tree (Australian genus Pomaderris) wordnet
- 7 A greenish-brown colour, the colour of a ripe hazelnut. countable, uncountable, usually
- 8 Australian tree grown especially for ornament and its fine-grained wood and bearing edible nuts wordnet
- 9 Freestone. countable, usually
Adjective
- 1 Of a greenish-brown colour. (often used to refer to eye colour)
"As she grew up and her hazel eyes became hazeler and her dark hair darker and her white skin whiter, and her form a sigh on every boy’s lips, she concentrated on one dream."
Adjective
- 1 of a light brown or yellowish brown color wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A female given name from English from the plant or colour hazel. Popular in the U.S. at the turn of the 20th century. countable, uncountable
"GREEN. - - Squire Rodney has been looking into your affairs, and, by Jove! he swears you've deceived Hazel Kirke! ARTHUR. Deceived her? How? GREEN. He says that your marriage to her was a pretence, a farce, a lie."
- 2 A topographic surname from Middle English for someone who lived near a hazel tree. countable, uncountable
- 3 A place in the United States:; A minor city in Calloway County, Kentucky. countable, uncountable
- 4 A place in the United States:; A town in Hamlin County, South Dakota. countable, uncountable
- 5 A place in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Snohomish County, Washington. countable, uncountable
Show 1 more definition
- 6 A place in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Wetzel County, West Virginia. countable, uncountable
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"Witch hazel tightens pores without drying skin."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "hazel"?
Common synonyms include: hazelnut, beige, brown, brownish, brownish green, brownish-yellow.
How do you use "hazel" in a sentence?
Witch hazel tightens pores without drying skin.
How do you pronounce "hazel"?
Pronounced /ˈheɪzəl/.
Etymology
From Middle English hasel, from Old English hæsl (“hazel, shrub”), from Proto-West Germanic *hasl, from Proto-Germanic *haslaz (“hazel”), from Proto-Indo-European *kóslos (“hazel”). Cognates Cognate with Yola hawlse (“hazel”), Dutch hazel, hazelaar (“hazel”), German Hasel (“hazel”), Vilamovian hozuł (“hazel”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, and Swedish hassel (“hazel”), Icelandic hesli (“hazel”), Norwegian Nynorsk hasl, hassel (“hazel”); also Latin corulus, corylus (“hazel”), Irish call, coll (“hazel”), Manx coull (“hazel”), Scottish Gaelic coll (“hazel”), Welsh cyll (“hazel trees”).