horse chestnut
noun
a tree, Aesculus hippocastanum, native to the Old World, having digitate leaves and upright clusters of white flowers.
the shiny, brown, nutlike seed of this tree or of other trees of the genus Aesculus.
Origin of horse chestnut
1590–1600; translation of New Latin
castanea equīna; so named from its use in treating respiratory diseases of horses
Words nearby horse chestnut
horse around,
horse balm,
horse bean,
horse block,
horse brass,
horse chestnut,
horse clam,
horse conch,
horse corn,
horse fly,
horse gentian
British Dictionary definitions for horse chestnut
horse chestnut
noun
any of several trees of the genus Aesculus, esp the Eurasian A. hippocastanum, having palmate leaves, erect clusters of white, pink, or red flowers, and brown shiny inedible nuts enclosed in a spiky bur: family Hippocastanaceae
Also called: conker
the nut of this tree
Word Origin for horse chestnut
C16: so called from its having been used in the treatment of respiratory disease in horses