California laurel

American  

noun

1. Also called bay tree. a tree, Umbellularia californica, of the laurel family, native to the western coast of the U.S., having aromatic leaves and umbels of yellowish-green flowers.

2. the hard, golden-brown wood of this tree, used for making furniture and decorative objects.

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Etymology

Origin of California laurel

An Americanism dating back to 1870–75

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

California laurel

Eagle Rock Brewery has made a new helles-style lager flavored with three California native plants: woolly bluecurls, California laurel and black sage.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2021

The California laurel is shaking out a delicious, penetrating odor from its countless blossoms.

From The Wild Flowers of California: Their Names, Haunts, and Habits by Mary Elizabeth Parsons

Tests of California laurel wood by compression, indentation, shearing, transverse tension, pp. 223-236.

From The Mechanical Properties of Wood Including a Discussion of the Factors Affecting the Mechanical Properties, and Methods of Timber Testing by Samuel J. Record

This tree is known in different localities by a variety of names, such as "spice-bush," "balm of heaven," "sassafras laurel," "cajeput," "California bay-tree," "California olive," "mountain laurel," and "California laurel."

From The Wild Flowers of California: Their Names, Haunts, and Habits by Mary Elizabeth Parsons

The last tie was of polished California laurel wood, with a silver plate on which the names of the two companies and their officers were engraved.

From Stories of California by Ella M. Sexton