chestnut

noun

(countable) An edible nut (technically a fruit) of the Spanish chestnut or sweet chestnut tree (Castanea sativa); also (chiefly preceded by a descriptive word), a nut from a related shrub or tree; or a similar nut from an unrelated plant.

(countable) In full chestnut tree: the shrub or tree that bears this nut, the Spanish chestnut or sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa); also (chiefly preceded by a descriptive word), a shrub or tree of the genus Castanea.

(uncountable) A dark, reddish-brown colour, like that of chestnut fruit (noun, sense 1).

(countable) A horse with a reddish-brown coat.

(countable, figurative) Chiefly in old chestnut: a joke, meme, phrase, ploy, etc. which has been repeated so often as to have grown ineffective or tiresome; a cliché.

(uncountable) Wood of a chestnut tree.

(by extension) Things resembling a chestnut fruit in appearance or colour.

(countable) An oval or round horny plate located on the inner side of the leg of a horse or other equines, which is thought by some people to correspond with the thumbnail of other animals.

A surname.

(countable, UK) Short for horse chestnut (“any of several tree species of the genus Aesculus, especially Aesculus hippocastanum; the fruit of such a tree”). [Any of several tree species of genus Aesculus, especially Aesculus hippocastanum, common in temperate northern hemisphere.]

adjective

Of a deep reddish-brown colour, like that of a chestnut fruit (noun, sense 1).

Roots

kastaneachest- · Greek · chestnut

Synonyms for chestnut

sorreladj russetadj buckskinn auburnadj roann mahoganyn skewbald

Synonyms & related words for chestnut

Find synonyms, related words, and the definition of chestnut — including sorrel, russet, buckskin, auburn, roan, mahogany. Dendril is a free visual thesaurus that shows them on an interactive map where stronger matches sit closer to the center — no signup, no ads.

Words related to chestnut

Explore words related to chestnut — words associated with it, words that go with it, and its nearest matches in meaning. Related words include chincapin, chinquapin, chinkapin, walnut, butternut, cobnut, conker, filbert. Click any word to make it the center of the map and keep exploring the web of connections.

Synonyms for chestnut

Common synonyms for chestnut include sorrel, russet, buckskin, auburn, roan, mahogany, skewbald — words that share a close meaning. Hover or tap any word on the map for its definition and part of speech.

Where does chestnut come from?

The word chestnut breaks down into one root of Greek origin: the root chest-, from Greek kastanea (“chestnut”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.