Illustration of chickweed
chickweed
noun
chick·weed
ˈchik-ˌwēd 
: any of various low-growing small-leaved weedy plants of the pink family (especially genera Cerastium and Stellaria)
especially
: a cosmopolitan weed (Stellaria media) naturalized in the U.S. from Eurasia
Examples of chickweed in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Next, my advice to reuse soil resulted in chickweeds growing in some containers.
—
Jeff Lowenfels | Alaska Gardening and Growing, Anchorage Daily News, 23 Mar. 2023
Fortunately, chickweed can be used as a cover crop up until flowers start to appear.
—Jeff Lowenfels, Anchorage Daily News, 22 June 2023
Dandelions, clover, chickweed, and bittercress all fall into this category.
—Chris McKeown, The Enquirer, 1 Apr. 2023
Fortunately, chickweed and other weed seedlings are easy to remove.
—Jeff Lowenfels | Alaska Gardening and Growing, Anchorage Daily News, 23 Mar. 2023
This is chickweed and hairy bittercress.
—Chris McKeown, The Enquirer, 25 Feb. 2023
Key Ingredients: organic olive fruit oil, organic shea butter, organic beeswax, organic jojoba seed oil, organic lavender flower oil, organic tea tree leaf oil, organic calendula flower extract, organic St. John’s wort extract, organic chickweed extract, and organic plantain extract.
—Ysolt Usigan, Woman's Day, 21 Sep. 2022
There is no easier time to pull chickweed given its size.
—Jeff Lowenfels, Anchorage Daily News, 28 July 2022
In spring, the southern Appalachian forests are flooded with light (maples, oaks, and tulip trees are just beginning to bud) and wildflowers—buttercups and purple trilliums, toothworts and mayapples, the neat white radials of great chickweed.
—Outside Online, 5 Nov. 2018
Jeff Lowenfels | Alaska Gardening and Growing, Anchorage Daily News, 23 Mar. 2023
Fortunately, chickweed can be used as a cover crop up until flowers start to appear.
—Jeff Lowenfels, Anchorage Daily News, 22 June 2023
Dandelions, clover, chickweed, and bittercress all fall into this category.
—Chris McKeown, The Enquirer, 1 Apr. 2023
Fortunately, chickweed and other weed seedlings are easy to remove.
—Jeff Lowenfels | Alaska Gardening and Growing, Anchorage Daily News, 23 Mar. 2023
This is chickweed and hairy bittercress.
—Chris McKeown, The Enquirer, 25 Feb. 2023
Key Ingredients: organic olive fruit oil, organic shea butter, organic beeswax, organic jojoba seed oil, organic lavender flower oil, organic tea tree leaf oil, organic calendula flower extract, organic St. John’s wort extract, organic chickweed extract, and organic plantain extract.
—Ysolt Usigan, Woman's Day, 21 Sep. 2022
There is no easier time to pull chickweed given its size.
—Jeff Lowenfels, Anchorage Daily News, 28 July 2022
In spring, the southern Appalachian forests are flooded with light (maples, oaks, and tulip trees are just beginning to bud) and wildflowers—buttercups and purple trilliums, toothworts and mayapples, the neat white radials of great chickweed.
—Outside Online, 5 Nov. 2018
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'chickweed.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
15th century, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of chickweed was
in the 15th century
Phrases Containing chickweed
Dictionary Entries Near chickweed
Cite this Entry
“Chickweed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chickweed. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
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Kids Definition
chickweed
noun
chick·weed
ˈchik-ˌwēd
: any of several low-growing small-leaved weedy plants related to the pinks
More from Merriam-Webster on chickweed
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about chickweed
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