dragon tree

American

noun

a tall, treelike plant, Dracaena draco, of the Canary Islands, scarce in the wild but common in cultivation, yielding a variety of dragon's blood.
any of several other plants of the genus Dracaena, as D. marginata, having long, sword-shaped, variously colored leaves, cultivated as ornamentals.

dragon tree British

noun

a tree, Dracaena draco, of the Canary Islands, having clusters of sword-shaped leaves at the tips of its branches: family Agavaceae . It is a source of dragon's blood

"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

Etymology

Origin of dragon tree

First recorded in 1605–15

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.

At the end of my second date with Jonathan, we stood by a spiky dragon tree on Montana Avenue in Santa Monica and hugged.

From Los Angeles Times

It beat a sycamore that grows on top of an Essex castle and a dragon tree on the Isle of Wight to scoop the prize.

From BBC

In two pieces with the latent energy of musical instruments, he threads dragon tree fronds through the holes of chicken wire that rises in a column from a planter.

From Los Angeles Times

One of the most iconic of its native species is the blood dragon tree - a striking, umbrella-shaped tree with a thick trunk.

From BBC

Which is why I also put a Canary Island dragon tree in the room.”

From Architectural Digest

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