Ha″zel (hā″z'l), n. [OE. hasel, AS. hæsel; akin to D. hazelaar, G. hazel, OHG. hasal, hasala, Icel. hasl, Dan & Sw. hassel, L. corylus, for cosylus.] 1. (Bot.) A shrub or small tree of the genus Corylus, as the C. avellana, bearing a nut containing a kernel of a mild, farinaceous taste; the filbert. The American species are C. Americana, which produces the common hazelnut, and C. rostrata. See Filbert. Gray.
2. A miner's name for freestone. Raymond.
Hazel earth, soil suitable for the hazel; a fertile loam. — Hazel grouse(Zoöl.), a European grouse (Bonasa betulina), allied to the American ruffed grouse. — Hazel hoe, a kind of grub hoe. — Witch hazel. See Witch-hazel, and Hamamelis.