Definition of "gosling"
gosling
noun
plural goslings
Quotations
Marta's gander was a magnificent snow-white bird: the object of terror to foxes, children and dogs. She had reared him as a gosling; and whenever he approached, he would let fly a low contented burble and sidle his neck around her thighs.
1988, Bruce Chatwin, Utz, London: Jonathan Cape; republished London: Vintage Books, 2005, page 50
(dated) A catkin on willows, nut trees, and pines.
Quotations
These Aments (we must no longer call them catkins) are composed both of male and female flowers; what Henry calls goslings in spring are the Aments of the willow tree ; his green goslings are female Aments , and , when mature , have the appearance of little tufts of wool, which appearance is caused by the downy material that crowns their feeds;
1797, Botanical Dialogues, Between Hortensia and Her Four Children, page 8
In the afternoon: cut back the crack willow around the pool; the fluffy flowers fall on the water. Locally, the flowers are known as 'goslings'. Water. It has no motion of its own; it is the mechanic betrayer of other forces. the breeze gently drifts the goslings to the far shore.
2018, John Lewis-Stempel, The Wood: The Life & Times of Cockshutt Wood