English▸ noun
(plural hackberries)
a tree of the elm family that has leaves resembling those of nettles, found in both tropical and temperate regions. See also nettle tree. Genus Celtis, family Ulmaceae: several species, in particular the North American hackberry (C. occidentalis), which bears edible purple berries and whose bark becomes ridged and covered with warty knobs.
▪ the berry of the hackberry tree.
– ORIGIN mid 18th century : variant of northern English dialect hagberry, of Scandinavian origin.