n. [ OE. Spruce or Pruse, Prussia, Prussian. So named because it was first known as a native of Prussia, or because its sprouts were used for making, spruce beer. Cf. Spruce beer, below, Spruce, a. ] 1. (Bot.) Any coniferous tree of the genus Picea, as the Norway spruce (Picea excelsa), and the white and black spruces of America (Picea alba and Picea nigra), besides several others in the far Northwest. See Picea. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The wood or timber of the spruce tree. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Prussia leather; pruce. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Spruce, a sort of leather corruptly so called for Prussia leather. E. Phillips. [ 1913 Webster ]

Douglas spruce (Bot.), a valuable timber tree (Pseudotsuga Douglasii) of Northwestern America. --
Essence of spruce, a thick, dark-colored, bitterish, and acidulous liquid made by evaporating a decoction of the young branches of spruce. --
Hemlock spruce (Bot.), a graceful coniferous tree (Tsuga Canadensis) of North America. Its timber is valuable, and the bark is largely used in tanning leather. --
Spruce beer. [ G. sprossenbier; sprosse sprout, shoot (akin to E. sprout, n.) + bier beer. The word was changed into spruce beer because the beer came from Prussia (OE. Spruce), or because it was made from the sprouts of the spruce. See Sprout, n., Beer, and cf. Spruce, n. ] A kind of beer which is tinctured or flavored with spruce, either by means of the extract or by decoction. --
Spruce grouse. (Zool.) Same as Spruce partridge, below. --
Spruce leather. See Spruce, n., 3. --
Spruce partridge (Zool.), a handsome American grouse (Dendragapus Canadensis) found in Canada and the Northern United States; -- called also Canada grouse. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Compar. Sprucer superl. Sprucest ] [ Perhaps fr. spruce a sort of leather from Prussia, which was an article of finery. See Spruce, n. ] 1. Neat, without elegance or dignity; smart; trim; -- formerly applied to things with a serious meaning; now chiefly applied to persons. “Neat and spruce array.” Remedy of Love. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Sprightly; dashing. [ Obs. ] “Now, my spruce companions.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

He is so spruce that he can never be genteel. Tatler. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- Finical; neat; trim. See Finical. [ 1913 Webster ]

-- Spruce"ly, adv. -- Spruce"ness, n. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Spruced p. pr. & vb. n. Sprucing ] To dress with affected neatness; to trim; to make spruce; -- often used with up; as, to spruce up the house for Company. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To dress one's self with affected neatness; as, to spruce up. [ 1913 Webster ]