coral tree

American  

noun

1. any of various tropical shrubs or trees of the genus Erythrina, of the legume family, having large clusters of pealike flowers.

---

coral tree British  

noun

1. any of various thorny, tropical trees of the leguminous genus Erythrina, having bright red flowers and reddish shiny seeds

---

Etymology

Origin of coral tree

First recorded in 1625–35

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

coral tree

The Buddha survived, but the coral tree that shaded it was gone.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 5, 2025

First come the plants: the Baishan fir and the Qiaojia pine, the coral tree and the suicide palm.

From New York Times ● Mar. 29, 2023

He’s on the phone from his home in Beverly Hills, where he keeps a sunny office above the garage with a distant view of the ocean through a big coral tree.

From Washington Post ● Mar. 13, 2017

A scuba diver hovers above a black coral tree bursting with cardinal fish.

From National Geographic ● Nov. 16, 2015

It was a secluded spot in the shade of a coral tree, next to a wall that was covered with bougain­ villea.

From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel