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

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

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 Parsons, Mary Elizabeth

The mansanilla, the branches of which are like red coral, and the leaves the lightest of greens, the California laurel, and many others of which I do not know the names, were too beautiful.

From The Sunny Side of Diplomatic Life, 1875-1912 by Hegermann-Lindencrone, L. de (Lillie de)

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 Parsons, Mary Elizabeth

It was made of California laurel, handsomely polished, and on it was a silver plate with an inscription and the names of the officers of the two roads.

From History of California by Bandini, Helen Elliott