dogberry


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dog·ber·ry

 (dôg′bĕr′ē, dŏg′-)
n.
1. Any of various wild fruit-bearing shrubs or trees, such as a dogwood, gooseberry, or mountain ash.
2. The fruit of any of these plants.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

dogberry

(ˈdɒɡˌbɛrɪ; -bərɪ; -brɪ)
n, pl -ries
1. (Plants) any of certain plants that have berry-like fruits, such as the European dogwood or the bearberry
2. (Cookery) the fruit of any of these plants

dogberry

(ˈdɒɡˌbɛrɪ; -bərɪ; -brɪ)
n, pl -ries
(Literary & Literary Critical Terms) (sometimes capital) a foolish, meddling, and usually old official
[after Dogberry, character in Shakespeare's Much Ado about Nothing (1598)]
ˈdogberryˌism n
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

dog•ber•ry

(ˈdɔgˌbɛr i, -bə ri, ˈdɒg-)

n., pl. -ries.
1. the berry or fruit of any of various plants, as the chokeberry, Aronia arbutifolia, or the mountain ash, Sorbus americana.
2. the plant itself.
[1545–55]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
References in classic literature ?
As I cannot, like Dogberry, find it in my heart to bestow all my tediousness upon the reader, I will not go on to bore him with a minute detail of all the discoveries and proceedings of this and the following day.
Three Inch Fools promise "a rip-roaring comedy of quarrels, deceptions and a frustratingly stupid man called Dogberry".
The five-strong troupe will arrive in Angus armed with all manner of musical instruments to present their own inventive take on Shakespeare's infamous Scottish play Macbeth and Much Ado About Nothing - a rip-roaring comedy of quarrels, deceptions and a frustratingly stupid man called Dogberry. Glamis Castle, July 16.
But this development does allow the scene-stealing triumph of the night to take centre stage in the second gender swap of the production, which sees Laura Dalgliesh win every heart in the house with the most skilfully comedic portrayal of law enforcement officer Dogberry I have ever seen (and I have seen a fair few!).
Camp Dogberry in Messina, Maine, is run by the Leonato's and their daughters, Bee and Hana.
The players in "Much Ado About Nothing" include Lisa Dawn as Beatrice, Jay Pastucha as Benedict, Christoper Picchione as Claudio, Tessa Newman as Hero, Matt Johnson as Don Pedro, and Tim Ahlberg as Dogberry.
This is one of Shakespeare's comedies and Sion Pritchard as Dogberry the constable in charge of Messina's night watch, is an absolute hoot.
Jake Ferretti was also a great Don Pedro, Prince of Aragon and Sherry Baines a wonderful Beatrice, while Phylip Harries is excellent in his execution of Dogberry as the light relief.
A few months ago I enjoyed a performance of Much Ado About Nothing at Stratford, where the actor playing Dogberry set the house roaring with laughter.
A few months ago I enjoyed a performance of Much Ado About A Nothing at Stratford, where the actor playing Dogberry set the house roaring with laughter.
Three pop-up set pieces particularly stand out, as they rise from under the stage: a snooker table around which evil Don John (Sam Alexander) and Conrade (William Bellchambers) plot against Count Claudio and Don Pedro, Hero's dressing room and Dogberry's cramped police station -which has to be the funniest scene in both plays.