Barberry \Bar"ber*ry\, n. [OE. barbarin, barbere, OF. berbere.]

(Bot.) A shrub of the genus Berberis, common along roadsides and in neglected fields. B. vulgaris is the species best known; its oblong red berries are made into a preserve or sauce, and have been deemed efficacious in fluxes and fevers. The bark dyes a fine yellow, esp. the bark of the root. [Also spelt berberry.]

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)