bullace

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun small wild or half-domesticated Eurasian plum bearing small ovoid fruit in clusters

Etymology

From Middle English bolas, bolace, from Anglo-Norman and Old French beloce, buloce (“sloe”), from Vulgar Latin *bullucea, from Late Latin bulluca (“kind of small fruit”); of Celtic/Gaulish origin, akin to Celtiberian *bullācā, from Proto-Celtic *bullākā, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeHw- (“to swell, puff”), itself imitative. Possibly influenced by Latin galla (“oak apple”) with metathesis of the consonants. See also Spanish bugalla (“oak apple”), Portuguese bugalho, and (the distantly related) Latin bucca.

In classic literature

Synonyms

Prunus insititia

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