Etymology From Middle English wilwe, welew, variant of wilghe, from Old English welig, from Proto-West Germanic *wilig, from Proto-Germanic *wiligaz, from Proto-Indo-European *welik- (compare (Arcadian) Ancient Greek ἑλίκη (helíkē), Hittite 𒌑𒂖𒆪 (welku, “grass”)), from *wel- (“twist, turn”).
1
Any of various deciduous trees or shrubs in the genus Salix, in the willow family Salicaceae, found primarily on moist soils in cooler zones in the northern hemisphere.
[…] and through the middle of this forest, from wall to wall, ran a winding line of brilliant green which marked the course of cottonwoods and willows.1912 January, Zane Grey, chapter 8, in Riders of the Purple Sage […], New York, N.Y.; London: Harper & Brothers Publishers, →OCLC:
And willows, willow-herb, and grass, / And meadowsweet, and haycocks dry, / No whit less still and lonely fair / Than the high cloudlets in the sky.1917, Edward Thomas, “Adlestrop”, in Poems, London: Selwyn & Blount, page 40:
3 more examples
The pounded leaves of the willow, drunk in a concoction, were formerly reputed to diminish amatory desires.1961, Harry E. Wedeck, Dictionary of Aphrodisiacs, New York: The Citadel Press, page 249:
By old age she was emaciated, the bones jutting out of her face and her figure frail as a willow branch.1983 December 3, J. R., “Isak Dinesen, The Life of a Storyteller (review)”, in Gay Community News, volume 11, number 20, page 10:
Deep in the willow / Hidden from grace / Succumb to insecurity / Your final resting place / Crafting your perfect world, ignoring total truth / You'll die alone / There's only room for you2023, “Deep in the Willow”, performed by Knocked Loose:
Etymology From Middle English wilwe, welew, variant of wilghe, from Old English welig, from Proto-West Germanic *wilig, from Proto-Germanic *wiligaz, from Proto-Indo-European *welik- (compare (Arcadian) Ancient Greek ἑλίκη (helíkē), Hittite 𒌑𒂖𒆪 (welku, “grass”)), from *wel- (“twist, turn”).
1
To open and cleanse (cotton, flax, wool, etc.) by means of a willow.
2
To form a shape or move in a way similar to the long, slender branches of a willow.
Willowing over the rough cobbles of the little pier stepped a thin, bent figure, adorned with a silver nanny-goat's beard and bobbling eyes interrupted by the rim of a pair of pince-nez.1928, Robert Byron, “Gardenias and Sweetpeas”, in The Station: Athos: Treasures and Men, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Alfred A[braham] Knopf, →OCLC, page 175:
Joe’s impulse was to sketch her, with her shadow willowing beyond her on the mouse-gray paving-stone; but his left fist, obeying instinct, remained clenched behind his back […]1930, Talbot Mundy, chapter 7, in Black Light:
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It was floating a foot under the surface. The eyes were holes. The mouth was a slit cavern of darkness. The hair willowed around the scalp.1985, Martin Booth, Hiroshima Joe, New York: Picador, page 394:
The draft-drawn smoke willowed down through the hole and across my face, but I didn’t worry about coughing or sneezing.2013, Dean Koontz, Wilderness, Bantam Books: