horse chestnut

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horse chest·nut • n. a deciduous tree (genus Aesculus, family Hippocastanaceae) with large leaves of five leaflets, conspicuous sticky winter buds, and upright conical clusters of white, pink, or red flowers. Unrelated to true chestnuts, the horse chestnut bears unpalatable nuts enclosed in fleshy, thorny husks. ∎ the fruit or seed of this tree.

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