bur

bur ¹ also burr  (bûr)

n.

1.

a. A rough prickly husk or covering surrounding the seeds or fruits of plants such as the chestnut or the burdock.

b. A plant producing such husks or coverings.

2. A persistently clinging or nettlesome person or thing.

3. A rough protuberance, especially a burl on a tree.

4. Any of various rotary cutting tools designed to be attached to a drill.

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[Middle English burre, of Scandinavian origin.]

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bur ²  (bûr)

n. & v.

Variant of burr².

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bur ³  (bûr)

n.

Variant of burr³.

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bur or burr

Noun

1. a seed case or flower head with hooks or prickles

2. any plant that produces burs [probably from Old Norse]

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bur also burr  (bûr)

A type of pseudocarp in which the outer surface possesses hooks or barbs. Burs become caught in the feathers or hair of animals, which then carry them away to disperse the seeds.

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	bur - seed vessel having hooks or prickles burr pericarp, seed vessel - the ripened and variously modified walls of a plant ovary beggar-ticks, Spanish needles - the seed of bur marigolds
	2.	bur - small bit used in dentistry or surgery burr bit - the cutting part of a drill; usually pointed and threaded and is replaceable in a brace or bitstock or drill press; "he looked around for the right size bit" burr drill, dentist's drill - a high speed drill that dentists use to cut into teeth
Verb	1.	bur - remove the burrs from burr remove, take away, withdraw, take - remove something concrete, as by lifting, pushing, or taking off, or remove something abstract; "remove a threat"; "remove a wrapper"; "Remove the dirty dishes from the table"; "take the gun from your pocket"; "This machine withdraws heat from the environment"