0
Angliholic Posted 18 years ago
Grammar

the weeping willow

Hi,
Why do native speakers call the willow "the weeping willow?" Does "weeping" here refer to "crying?"IF yes, why is it crying? If not, what does it mean? Thanks.
  

Top answer

It's just the name of that type of tree. There are several types of willow tree: Weeping willow is one of them. It has long branches that droop down to the ground.

  • It's just the name of that type of tree.
  • There are several types of willow tree: Weeping willow is one of them.
  • It has long branches that droop down to the ground.
Free · every Monday

Get the Weekly English Kit 📬

New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.

4 Answers
0
It's just the name of that type of tree. There are several types of willow tree: Weeping willow is one of them. It has long branches that droop down to the ground.
0
nona the britIt's just the name of that type of tree. There are several types of willow tree: Weeping willow is one of them. It has long branches that droop down to the ground.

Thanks, Nona.
We call it litterally "drooping willow" because its long branches and leaves are drooping all the time. And I do think our counterpart makes sense to
0
think about a weeping woman, with long, loose, dishevelled hair
-------

A species called the weeping willow, has long and slender branches which droop and hang downward, the Salix Babylonica.

Definition from Webster's American Dictionary of the English Language, 1828.
0
As Nona has said, it looks a little sad with its drooping branches. Curiously, the tree is quite common in Finland and is called the weeping willow in Finnish as well!
Off topic: This question sent me looking for the English name of Finland's national bird, the whooper swan. Not being a zoologist, I didn't know that until I consulted Wikipedia and I think whooper swan is the rig

Related Questions