spruceness

spruce ¹  (sprs)

n.

1.

a. Any of various coniferous evergreen trees of the genus Picea, having needlelike foliage, drooping cones, and soft wood often used for paper pulp.

b. Any of various similar or related trees.

c. The wood of any of these trees.

2. A grayish green to dark greenish black.

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[Short for obsolete Spruce fir, Prussian fir, from Middle English Spruce, Prussia, alteration of Pruce from Anglo-Norman Pruz, from Medieval Latin Prussia.]

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spruce ²  (sprs)

adj. spruc·er, spruc·est

Neat, trim, and smart in appearance: "a good-looking man; spruce and dapper, and very tidy" (Anthony Trollope).

v. spruced, spruc·ing, spruc·es

v.tr.

To make neat and trim: spruced up the chairs with new slipcovers.

v.intr.

To make oneself neat and smart in appearance: He was sprucing for the school dance.

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[Perhaps from obsolete spruce leather, Prussian leather, from Middle English Spruce, Prussia; see spruce¹.]

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sprucely adv.

spruceness n.

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

spruceness - the state of being neat and smart and trim neatness tidiness - the habit of being tidy trim, trimness - a state of arrangement or appearance; "in good trim"