cedar

[see-der]

noun

1. any of several Old World, coniferous trees of the genus Cedrus, having wide, spreading branches.

2. any of various junipers, as the red cedar, Juniperus virginiana, of the cypress family, having reddish-brown bark and dark-blue, berrylike fruit.

3. any of various other coniferous trees.

4. any of several trees belonging to the genus Cedrela, of the mahogany family, as the Spanish cedar.

5. Also called cedarwood. the fragrant wood of any of these trees, used in furniture and as a moth repellent.

cedar

/ ˈsiːdə /

noun

1. any Old World coniferous tree of the genus Cedrus, having spreading branches, needle-like evergreen leaves, and erect barrel-shaped cones: family Pinaceae See also cedar of Lebanon deodar

2. any of various other conifers, such as the red cedars and white cedars

3. the wood of any of these trees

4. any of certain other plants, such as the Spanish cedar

adjective

1. made of the wood of a cedar tree

Word History and Origins

Origin of cedar¹

before 1000; Middle English cedir, Old English ceder < Latin cedrus < Greek kédros; replacing Middle English cedre < Old French < Latin, as above

Word History and Origins

Origin of cedar¹

C13: from Old French cedre, from Latin cedrus, from Greek kedros

Example Sentences

There are no protections to prevent healthy deodar cedars, sycamores or pines from being ripped down, as there are in Pasadena.

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The ancient Lady Jane Grey Oak in Leicester's Bradgate Park, and a cedar with low-sweeping boughs where The Beatles were photographed at London's Chiswick House, completed the top five in the rankings.

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In the air again, somewhere around here, high over the cedars and the firs and the hemlocks that cover the Cascade Mountains, he strapped on two of the parachutes, and he jumped out.

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It’s just a quiet drive beneath a near mile of stately cedars bedecked with strings of multicolor lights.

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You can see the shifting grain of cedar wall panels, the smooth movement of Japanese plaster and the jagged veining of terrazzo slabs.

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Related Words

• evergreen