Hypertext Webster Gateway: "spruce"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Spruce \Spruce\, a. [Compar. {Sprucer}; superl. {Sprucest}]
[Perhaps fr. spruce a sort of leather from Prussia, which was
an article of finery. See {Spruce}, n.]
1. Neat, without elegance or dignity; -- formerly applied to
things with a serious meaning; now chiefly applied to
persons. ``Neat and spruce array.'' --Remedy of Love.
2. Sprightly; dashing. [Obs.] ``Now, my spruce companions.''
--Shak.
He is so spruce that he can never be genteel.
--Tatler.
Syn: Finical; neat; trim. See {Finical}. -- {Sruce"ly}, adv.
-- {Spruce"ness}, n.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Spruce \Spruce\, n. [OE. Spruce or Pruse, Prussia, Prussian. So
named because it was first known as a native of Prussia, or
because its sprouts were used for making, spruce beer. Cf.
Spruce beer, below, {Spruce}, a.]
1. (Bot.) Any coniferous tree of the genus {Picea}, as the
Norway spruce ({P. excelsa}), and the white and black
spruces of America ({P. alba} and {P. nigra}), besides
several others in the far Northwest. See {Picea}.
2. The wood or timber of the spruce tree.
3. Prussia leather; pruce. [Obs.]
Spruce, a sort of leather corruptly so called for
Prussia leather. --E. Phillips.
{Douglas spruce} (Bot.), a valuable timber tree ({Pseudotsuga
Douglasii}) of Northwestern America.
{Essence of spruce}, a thick, dark-colored, bitterish, and
acidulous liquid made by evaporating a decoction of the
young branches of spruce.
{Hemlock spruce} (Bot.), a graceful coniferous tree ({Tsuga
Canadensis}) of North America. Its timber is valuable, and
the bark is largely used in tanning leather.
{Spruce beer}. [G. sprossenbier; sprosse sprout, shoot (akin
to E. sprout, n.) + bier beer. The word was changed into
spruce because the beer came from Prussia (OE. Spruce), or
because it was made from the sprouts of the spruce. See
{Sprout}, n., {Beer}, and cf. {Spruce}, n.] A kind of beer
which is tinctured or flavored with spruce, either by
means of the extract or by decoction.
{Spruce grouse}. (Zo["o]l.) Same as {Spruce partridge},
below.
{Spruce leather}. See {Spruce}, n., 3.
{Spruce partridge} (Zo["o]l.), a handsome American grouse
({Dendragapus Canadensis}) found in Canada and the
Northern United States; -- called also {Canada grouse}.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Spruce \Spruce\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Spruced}; p. pr. & vb. n.
{Sprucing}.]
To dress with affected neatness; to trim; to make spruce.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Spruce \Spruce\, v. i.
To dress one's self with affected neatness; as, to spruce up.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
spruce
adj : marked by smartness in dress and manners; "a dapper young
man"; "a jaunty red hat" [syn: {dapper}, {dashing}, {jaunty},
{natty}, {raffish}, {rakish}, {smart}, {snappy}]
n 1: light soft moderately strong wood of spruce trees; used
especially for timbers and millwork
2: any coniferous tree of the genus Picea
v 1: make neat, smart, or trim; "Spruce up your house for Spring"
[syn: {spruce up}, {titivate}, {tittivate}, {smarten up},
{slick up}, {spiff up}]
2: dress and groom with particular care, as for a special
occasion; "He spruced up for the party" [syn: {spruce up},
{slick up}, {smarten up}]
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