Any of several N. American species of holly (Ilex, formerly Prinos) with berries, usually scarlet, which persist through the winter; esp. Ilex verticillata (also called Black Alder) and I. lævigata (Smooth Winterberry). Also, the fruit of any of these.
1759. Miller, Gard. Dict. (ed. 7), Prinos. Winterberry.
1770. J. R. Forster, trans. Kalm’s Trav. N. Amer., I. 67. Prinos verticillatus, the winterberry tree in swamps.
1832. J. Bree, St. Herbert’s Isle, 147. Brambled paths, where winter-berries hang.
1889. Science-Gossip, XXV. 171. A vigorous growth of winter-berry, laden with its crimson fruit.
