# sprig

> English word · Noun · IPA /spɹɪɡ/ · frequency rank #57,730

## Definitions
1. A small shoot or twig of a tree or other plant; a spray.
2. An ornament resembling a small shoot or twig.
3. One of the separate pieces of lace fastened on a ground in applique lace.
4. A youth; a lad.
5. A brad, or nail without a head.
6. A small eyebolt ragged or barbed at the point.
7. A house sparrow.

## Etymology
From Middle English sprig, sprigge, of uncertain origin. Perhaps from Middle Low German sprik, spricke (“a dry, easily broken twig that has fallen from a tree; sprig”). Compare also dialectal English sprag (“sprig, twig”), English spray (“branch”), Old English spræc (“a shoot”), German Low German Spricke, Sprick (“dry branch, twig”).

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