tumbleweed
1 synonym for tumbleweed, grouped by meaning and by how common each one is.
Noun — A plant that breaks off from its roots once dry and rolls across the ground in the wind, scattering its seeds.
Synonyms
Rare, literary or technical
Precise, but they will stand out — check the sense before using one.
winged pigweed
How to use tumbleweed
The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.
rolling tumbleweed
awkward tumbleweed moment
Etymology
A compound of tumble + weed, describing how the dried, ball-shaped plant tumbles across open ground driven by the wind.
Full origin of tumbleweed →Frequently asked questions
What does “tumbleweed” mean?
The word “tumbleweed” means a plant that breaks off from its roots once dry and rolls across the ground in the wind, scattering its seeds. In plain terms, the classic dry, rolling desert plant — or, jokingly, the awkward silence after a joke or comment nobody responds to.
How do you pronounce “tumbleweed”?
“Tumbleweed” is pronounced TUHM-buhl-weed (/ˈtʌmbəlˌwid/ in IPA).
How do you use “tumbleweed” in a sentence?
Here is “tumbleweed” used in a sentence: “A tumbleweed rolled slowly across the deserted highway.”
What part of speech is “tumbleweed”?
“Tumbleweed” is a noun.
How many meanings does “tumbleweed” have?
“Tumbleweed” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: a plant that breaks off from its roots once dry and rolls across the ground in the wind, scattering its seeds.
Related words
tumble thistle
