fern

noun

ˈfərn 

: any of a division (Polypodiophyta) or class (Polypodiopsida) of flowerless spore-producing vascular plants having alternating sporophyte and gametophyte generations

especially : any of an order (Polypodiales) of homosporous plants possessing roots, stems, and leaflike fronds compare seed fern

fernlike

ˈfərn-ˌlīk 

adjective

ferny

ˈfər-nē 

adjective

Examples of fern in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Williams also recommends updating old containers and planters by adding fresh plantings or simple ferns. —Cameron Beall, Southern Living, 31 Mar. 2025

Step slowly along the stone path, brushing against giant ferns dotted with raindrops. —Donna Vickroy, Chicago Tribune, 28 Mar. 2025

Tree trunks and fern stems In this new study, a team of scientists from institutions in the United States, Tibet, and China used fossil evidence of a terrestrial plant community that appears to have remained largely intact throughout the extinction event. —Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 12 Mar. 2025

There, wisteria laces the tops of ancient oaks, their limbs sleeved in resurrection ferns and dripping mosses. —Caroline Rogers, Southern Living, 20 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English fearn; akin to Old High German farn fern, Sanskrit parṇa wing, leaf

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing fern

• bird's-nest fern
• Boston fern
• Christmas fern
• cinnamon fern
• fern bar
• fern seed
• hay-scented fern
• maidenhair fern
• male fern
• ostrich fern
• seed fern
• southern maidenhair fern
• sweet fern
• sword fern
• tree fern
• Venus' hair fern

Rhymes for fern

• berne
• burn
• churn
• dern
• earn
• erne
• hern
• hirn
• learn
• morne
• quern
• spurn

Kids Definition

fern

noun

ˈfərn 

: any of an order of vascular plants resembling seed plants in having root, stem, and leaflike fronds but reproducing by spores instead of by flowers and seeds

fernlike

-ˌlīk 

adjective

ferny

ˈfər-nē 

adjective