What does "hemlock" mean?
Any of the poisonous umbelliferous plants, of the genera; Conium, either Conium maculatum or Conium chaerophylloides.
Hemlock
/ˈhɛmˌlɒk/ name, noun
name, noun ·Moderate ·College level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Any of the poisonous umbelliferous plants, of the genera; Conium, either Conium maculatum or Conium chaerophylloides.
- Grammar: hemlock is listed as name, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: conium maculatum, poison hemlock, poison parsley, ax.
- Useful contrasts: edible plant, harmless substance, nonpoison.
- Usage evidence: Far away beyond the pine-woods, there is a little garden. There the grass grows long and deep, there are the great white stars of the hemlock flower, there the nightingale sings all night long. All night long he sings, and the cold crystal moon looks down, and the yew-tree spreads out its giant arms over the sleepers.
How to use "hemlock"
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- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "hemlock" 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
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- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
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- 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 "hemlock" 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
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Compare nearby meanings
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Definition decision workflow
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Check whether "hemlock" is acting as 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
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Definitions
Noun
- 1 Any of the poisonous umbelliferous plants, of the genera; Conium, either Conium maculatum or Conium chaerophylloides. countable, uncountable
"Have a tree or two the witches particularly like, such as the alder, larch, cypress and hemlock; then, to counteract any possible evil effects, there must be a holly, yew, hazel, elder, mountain ash or juniper."
- 2 an evergreen tree, could refer to any one of a genus of conifers named Tsuga wordnet
- 3 Any of the poisonous umbelliferous plants, of the genera; Cicuta (water hemlock). countable, uncountable
- 4 soft coarse splintery wood of a hemlock tree especially the western hemlock wordnet
- 5 Poison obtained from these Conium and Cicuta plants. countable, uncountable
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 large branching biennial herb native to Eurasia and Africa and adventive in North America having large fernlike leaves and white flowers; usually found in damp habitats; all parts extremely poisonous wordnet
- 7 Any of several coniferous trees, of the genus Tsuga, that grow in North America; the wood of such trees. countable, uncountable
"The wind blows and the hemlocks wave their feathery leading shoots. Such a graceful profile, so elegant a tree."
- 8 poisonous drug derived from an Eurasian plant of the genus Conium wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A number of places in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Taylor Township, Howard County, Indiana.
- 2 A number of places in the United States:; A census-designated place in Richland Township, Saginaw County, Michigan.
- 3 A number of places in the United States:; A census-designated place in the town of Livonia, Livingston County, New York.
- 4 A number of places in the United States:; A village in Perry County, Ohio.
- 5 A number of places in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Tillamook County, Oregon.
Show 6 more definitions
- 6 A number of places in the United States:; A township in Columbia County, Pennsylvania.
- 7 A number of places in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Floyd County, Virginia.
- 8 A number of places in the United States:; Synonym of Stabler, Skamania County, Washington.
- 9 A number of places in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Fayette County, West Virginia.
- 10 A number of places in the United States:; An unincorporated community in Jackson County, West Virginia.
- 11 A number of places in the United States:; A ghost town in the town of Warner, Clark County, Wisconsin.
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"Far away beyond the pine-woods, there is a little garden. There the grass grows long and deep, there are the great white stars of the hemlock flower, there the nightingale sings all night long. All night long he sings, and the cold crystal moon looks down, and the yew-tree spreads out its giant arms over the sleepers."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "hemlock"?
Common synonyms include: conium maculatum, poison hemlock, poison parsley, ax, beheading, belladonna.
How do you use "hemlock" in a sentence?
Far away beyond the pine-woods, there is a little garden. There the grass grows long and deep, there are the great white stars of the hemlock flower, there the nightingale sings all night long. All night long he sings, and the cold crystal moon looks down, and the yew-tree spreads out its giant arms over the sleepers.
How do you pronounce "hemlock"?
Pronounced /ˈhɛmˌlɒk/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English hemlok, hemeluc, from Old English hemlīc, hymlīc m and hymlīce f (“hemlock, bryony, convolvulus”), of uncertain origin. speculative etymology Compare Old English hymele (“hop-vine, hops”), Old English humele (“bryony, widerton, hair moss, gold-hair, morning glory”), Danish and Swedish humle (“hops”), Icelandic humall (“hops”). Perhaps from Scythian, from Proto-Iranian *háwHmah (“ephedra; juice”), from Proto-Indo-Iranian *sáwHmas from Proto-Indo-European *sewh₁- (“to press out, extract”). ;cognates * (from Sarmato-Scythian *haumala) Ossetian хумӕллӕг (xumællæg, “hops”) * (from Sarmato-Scythian *hauma) Avestan 𐬵𐬀𐬊𐬨𐬀 (haoma), Baluchi [script needed] (hum), Persian هوم (hôm)) * (from Proto-Indo-Iranian *sauma) Sanskrit सोम (soma)) More at suck.
Etymology 2
All places are presumably named after the North American tree, which is non-poisonous.