tree
1 Americannoun
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a plant having a permanently woody main stem or trunk, ordinarily growing to a considerable height, and usually developing branches at some distance from the ground.
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any of various shrubs, bushes, and plants, as the banana, resembling a tree in form and size.
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something resembling a tree in shape, as a clothes tree or a crosstree.
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Mathematics, Linguistics. tree diagram.
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a pole, post, beam, bar, handle, or the like, as one forming part of some structure.
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a saddletree.
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a treelike group of crystals, as one forming in an electrolytic cell.
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a gallows or gibbet.
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the cross on which Christ was crucified.
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Computers. a data structure organized like a tree whose nodes store data elements and whose branches represent pointers to other nodes in the tree.
verb (used with object)
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to drive into or up a tree, as a pursued animal or person.
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Informal. to put into a difficult position.
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to stretch or shape on a tree, as a boot.
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to furnish (a structure) with a tree.
idioms
noun
noun
noun
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any large woody perennial plant with a distinct trunk giving rise to branches or leaves at some distance from the ground
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any plant that resembles this but has a trunk not made of wood, such as a palm tree
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a wooden post, bar, etc
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chem a treelike crystal growth; dendrite
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a branching diagrammatic representation of something, such as the grammatical structure of a sentence
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( as modifier )
a tree diagram
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an archaic word for gallows
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archaic the cross on which Christ was crucified
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in the highest position of a profession, etc
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informal in a difficult situation; trapped or stumped
verb
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to drive or force up a tree
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to shape or stretch (a shoe) on a shoetree
Other Word Forms
- treeless adjective
- treelessness noun
- treelike adjective
Etymology
Origin of tree
First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English trēo(w); cognate with Old Frisian, Old Norse trē, Old Saxon treo, Gothic triu; akin to Greek drŷs “oak,” Sanskrit, Avestan dru “wood”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
High winds and saturated ground have also toppled trees, removing nesting cavities for birds and burrows for mammals such as badgers and rabbits.
From BBC
The lavish presents - all clearly marked with designer labels - piled up and decorated like a Christmas tree, the expensive trips to five-star resorts around the world, the extravagant wedding parties that closed roads to traffic.
From BBC
Researchers will look at whether microscopic soil organisms could help tree survival consistently across sites.
From BBC
Neat rows of collard greens and kale stretch across irrigated beds, while orchards of peach trees — the ranch’s signature fruit — appear throughout the property.
From Los Angeles Times
The Boyle Heights project would enhance bike lanes and pedestrian-level lighting, as well as extend street curbs and plant more than 300 shade trees.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
