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spruce |
6 definitions found From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Spruce \Spruce\, a. [Compar. {Sprucer}; superl. {Sprucest}] [Perhaps fr spruce a sort of leather from Prussia, which was an article of finery. See {Spruce}, n.] 1. Neat, without elegance or dignity; -- formerly applied to things with a serious meaning; now chiefly applied to persons. ``Neat and spruce array.'' --Remedy of Love. 2. Sprightly; dashing. [Obs.] ``Now, my spruce companions.'' --Shak. He is so spruce that he can never be genteel. --Tatler. Syn: Finical; neat; trim. See {Finical}. -- {Sruce"ly}, adv -- {Spruce"ness}, n. From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Spruce \Spruce\, n. [OE. Spruce or Pruse, Prussia, Prussian. So named because it was first known as a native of Prussia, or because its sprouts were used for making, spruce beer. Cf Spruce beer, below, {Spruce}, a.] 1. (Bot.) Any coniferous tree of the genus {Picea}, as the Norway spruce ({P. excelsa}), and the white and black spruces of America ({P. alba} and {P. nigra}), besides several others in the far Northwest. See {Picea}. 2. The wood or timber of the spruce tree. 3. Prussia leather; pruce. [Obs.] Spruce, a sort of leather corruptly so called for Prussia leather. --E. Phillips. {Douglas spruce} (Bot.), a valuable timber tree ({Pseudotsuga Douglasii}) of Northwestern America. {Essence of spruce}, a thick, dark-colored, bitterish, and acidulous liquid made by evaporating a decoction of the young branches of spruce. {Hemlock spruce} (Bot.), a graceful coniferous tree ({Tsuga Canadensis}) of North America. Its timber is valuable, and the bark is largely used in tanning leather. {Spruce beer}. [G. sprossenbier sprosse sprout, shoot (akin to E. sprout, n.) + bier beer. The word was changed into spruce because the beer came from Prussia (OE. Spruce), or because it was made from the sprouts of the spruce. See {Sprout}, n., {Beer}, and cf {Spruce}, n.] A kind of beer which is tinctured or flavored with spruce, either by means of the extract or by decoction. {Spruce grouse}. (Zo["o]l.) Same as {Spruce partridge}, below. {Spruce leather}. See {Spruce}, n., 3. {Spruce partridge} (Zo["o]l.), a handsome American grouse ({Dendragapus Canadensis}) found in Canada and the Northern United States; -- called also {Canada grouse}. From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Spruce \Spruce\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Spruced}; p. pr & vb n. {Sprucing}.] To dress with affected neatness; to trim; to make spruce. From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Spruce \Spruce\, v. i. To dress one's self with affected neatness; as to spruce up From WordNet r 1.6 [wn]: spruce adj : marked by smartness in dress and manners; "a dapper young man"; "a jaunty red hat" [syn: {dapper}, {dashing}, {jaunty}, {natty}, {raffish}, {rakish}, {smart}, {snappy}] n 1: light soft moderately strong wood of spruce trees; used especially for timbers and millwork 2: any coniferous tree of the genus Picea v 1: make neat, smart, or trim; "Spruce up your house for Spring" [syn: {spruce up}, {titivate}, {tittivate}, {smarten up}, {slick up}, {spiff up}] 2: dress and groom with particular care as for a special occasion; "He spruced up for the party" [syn: {spruce up}, {slick up}, {smarten up}] From U.S. Gazetteer (1990) [gazetteer]: Spruce, MI Zip code(s): 48762
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