# cranesbill

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈkɹeɪnz.bɪl/

## Definitions
1. Any flowering plant of the genus Geranium found throughout the temperate zone.
2. A pair of long-beaked forceps.

## Etymology
First attested in the 1500s. Calque of Dutch craenhals; cognate with German Kranichhals and Middle Low German kraneshals, all likely derived from Latin geranium, from Ancient Greek γέρᾰνος (gérănos, “crane”).
By surface analysis, crane + -s- + bill. The flowering plant is so called because of the lengthened appendage of the seed vessel.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/cranesbill