Definition of: willow

(wil′ō) noun
1. Any of a large genus (Salix) of shrubs and trees related to the poplars, having generally smooth branches and often long, slender, pliant, and sometimes pendent branchlets.
2. The soft white wood of the willow.
3. Colloq. Something made of willow wood, especially a baseball or cricket bat.
4. A machine for giving a preliminary cleaning to cotton, flax, hemp, wool, etc., by means of long spikes projecting from a revolving cone or cylinder.
—v.t. To clean, as cotton, wool, etc., with a willow.
—adjective Of or pertaining to the willow; made of willow wood. [OE wilige, welig]
—wil′low·ish adjective