afforest

American

[uh-fawr-ist, uh-for-] / əˈfɔr ɪst, əˈfɒr- /

verb (used with object)

to convert (bare or cultivated land) into forest, originally for the purpose of providing hunting grounds.

afforest British

/ əˈfɒrɪst /

verb

(tr) to plant trees on; convert into forested land

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

afforestation noun
afforestment noun

Etymology

Origin of afforest

1495–1505; < Medieval Latin afforēstāre, equivalent to af- af- + forēst ( is ) forest + -āre infinitive suffix

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.

To convert into a forest; as, to afforest a tract of country.

From Webster's Unabridged Dictionary by Webster, Noah

Next, he set to work to afforest the newly recovered ground, to carve it out in allotments suitable for agricultural pursuits, and to encourage the settlement of vigorous working peasant-tenants.

From The Tragedies of the Medici by Staley, Edgcumbe

It has been found impossible to afforest them on account of the roughness of the sea-air, and the wash from their bluffs into the harbour has involved large expense in the erection of sea-walls.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Slice 3 "Borgia, Lucrezia" to "Bradford, John" by Various

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023