morel

Wikispecies

Borrowed from French morille (compare Picard merouille, meroule (“morel, mushroom”)), from Middle High German morhel, morchel (“edible fungus, morel”), from Old High German morhila (“edible root”), diminutive of Proto-West Germanic *morhā (“tree root, plant root”), from Proto-Germanic *murhǭ, *murhijǭ (“edible root”), from Proto-Indo-European *mork- (“tuber, edible herb”). Akin to German Morchel (“morel”), Middle Low German morke (“mushroom, morel”), German Möhre (“carrot”). Equivalent to dialectal more (“carrot, root”) +‎ -el (diminutive suffix).

• morell, moril

• (UK, US) IPA^(key): /məˈɹɛl/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛl

morel (plural morels)

1. A true morel; any of several fungi in the genus Morchella, the upper part of which is covered with a reticulated and pitted hymenium.
2. (Should we delete⁽⁺⁾ this redundant sense?) Any of several edible mushrooms, especially the common morel or yellow morel.
   • 2006, Michael Pollan, The Omnivore's Dilemma, The Penguin Press, →ISBN, page 388:

     The slightly sulfurous, meaty odor of morels attracts flies, which lay eggs in the safety of the mushroom's hollow stalk.

• black morel (Morchella angusticeps, Morchella conica, Morchella elata, Morchella septentrionalis)
• white morel (Morchella deliciosa)
• yellow morel (Morchella esculenta
• false morel (Gyromitra spp.)
• snow morel (Gyromitra gigas)

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

morel (plural morels)

1. Archaic form of morello (“type of cherry”).
   • 1821, Thomas Nuttall, A journal of travels into the Arkansa Territory, page 122:

     The insects which injure the morel cherry-trees so much in Pennsylvania, I perceive, here occasionally act in the same way upon the branches of the wild cherry […]

2. Certain plants or genera Solanum, Atropa, and Aralia, with dark, cherry-like berries.
   • 1836, François Magendie, A Formulary for the Preparation and Medical Administration of Certain New Remedies, page 142:

     It exists in both these plants, but whilst the leaves of the last one contain it in some quantity, none is found in those of the morel.

• great morel (Atropa belladonna)
• petty morel (Solanum nigrum, Aralia racemosa).

• “morel”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

• Lomer, Merlo

• moril (nonstandard)

Borrowed from Dutch moreel (“moral”), from French moral.

• IPA^(key): /ˈmorel/
• Rhymes: -orel
• Hyphenation: mo‧rel

morel (dialectal)

1. synonym of bermoral (“moral”)