chestnut

Everyday

1. A chestnut is a shiny reddish-brown nut that grows inside a prickly case on a chestnut tree; sweet chestnuts can be roasted and eaten. tree →
2. A chestnut is also the tree itself. tree →
3. Chestnut is a reddish-brown colour, often of hair or a horse. tree →
4. «An old chestnut» is a joke or story that has been told too many times. tree →

In the lessons

In nature lessons and autumn walks children collect chestnuts. Horse chestnuts (conkers in the UK and Ireland) are not for eating; sweet chestnuts are roasted at markets in winter. Phrases: roasted chestnuts, horse chestnut, chestnut tree, chestnut hair, an old chestnut.

Examples

• We collected shiny chestnuts in the park. tree →
• The chestnut case was covered in sharp spikes. tree →
• Roasted chestnuts smell wonderful in winter. tree →
• She has long chestnut hair. tree →
• The farmer rode a chestnut horse. tree →
• A huge chestnut tree shades the playground. tree →
• Don't eat horse chestnuts; they can make you sick. tree →
• Grandpa told that old chestnut about the talking dog again. tree →
• It is like entering a grove of chestnut and walnut-trees. tree →

Note

Countable: a chestnut, chestnuts. The «t» in the middle is usually silent: CHES-nut. Trap: horse chestnuts (conkers) look like sweet chestnuts but are poisonous to eat. As a colour word it comes before a noun (chestnut hair).