redwood

¹ American  

[red-wood] / ˈrɛdˌwʊd /

noun

• redwoods
  plural

1. any of the three extant tree species of the coniferous subfamily Sequoioideae, specifically the giant sequoia, coast redwood, and dawn redwood.

2. the valuable brownish-red timber of the coast redwood or giant sequoia, the harvesting of which is strictly regulated.

3. a red or reddish wood.

4. any of various trees yielding a red or reddish wood.

5. any tree whose wood produces a red dyestuff.

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adjective

1. made of red or reddish wood, especially that of the coast redwood or giant sequoia, the harvesting of which is strictly regulated.

   a six-piece set of redwood furniture for the patio.

redwood ² American  

[red-wood] / ˈrɛdˌwʊd /

Or redwud

adjective

Scot.

1. raving mad; insane.

2. distracted with anger; furious.

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redwood British  

/ ˈrɛdˌwʊd /

noun

1. a giant coniferous tree, Sequoia sempervirens , of coastal regions of California, having reddish fibrous bark and durable timber: family Taxodiaceae . The largest specimen is over 120 metres (360 feet) tall See also sequoia

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• redwoods
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of redwood¹

First recorded in 1610–20; red ¹ + wood ¹

Origin of redwood²

First recorded in 1550–60; red ¹ + wood ²

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Explanation

Redwoods are a kind of large, ancient evergreen trees commonly found on the coast of California. Coastal redwoods are the tallest living things on Earth. These magnificent trees are made up of three species, Sequoia and Sequoiadendron in California and Oregon, and China's Metasequoia. Redwoods have adapted over millions of years to be resistant to fire and infection, and they can reach heights of over 300 feet. Their name comes from the reddish-brown shade of their wood and bark. In 16th-century Scotland, the unrelated adjective redwood was used to mean "completely deranged."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

redwood redwoods

My brother and his wife live in a wooded section of town, where a dawn redwood is already flourishing on their property.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

During Xi's state visit to the US in 2013, then-President Barack Obama gifted him an inscribed bench made of redwood, native to California where the two had met.

From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2026

Then they spend hours gliding downstream past scenery that might as well be a Northern California highlight reel: vineyards, redwood forests and eventually a beach scene full of driftwood and sea stacks.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026

Some backers say the bill offers a new economic path forward for communities behind the so-called redwood curtain.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 10, 2026

He grabbed one of the alders he had used for their shelter and pulled it past the redwood roots.

From "Earthquake Terror" by Peg Kehret

Sequoias are on the “Red List of Threatened Species” site maintained by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, along with their two cousins, coast redwoods and dawn redwoods.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

For decades, loggers and environmentalists have clashed over the fate of its stately redwoods.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026

Now the redwoods are regrowing, “gorgeous” and gobbling carbon, she said.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 10, 2026

About five years ago, community members caught wind of plans to chop down towering redwoods within Jackson, near the coastal town of Caspar.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 10, 2026

It is not only the size of these redwoods but their strangeness that frightens them.

From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck

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