noun

1. any prickly or thorny bush, as a bramble or wild rose
2. a growth of such bushes
3. a twig of a brier

Etymology: ME brere (with vowel change as in friar < ME frere) < OE brer, brær

noun

1. an evergreen shrub or tree (Erica arborea) of the heath family, native to S Europe, with needlelike leaves and white flowers
2. its root, esp. the root burl, often used to make tobacco pipes
3. briar (sense )

Etymology: Fr bruyère, white heath < Gaul *brucus, heather, broom