gum tree

American  

noun

1. any tree that exudes gum, as a eucalyptus, the sour gum, or the sweet gum.

2. any of various other gum-yielding trees, as the sapodilla.

---

Etymology

Origin of gum tree

An Americanism dating back to 1670–80

Example Sentences

At the Treasure Island Holiday Park in the Gold Coast, just north of Surfer's Paradise, a gum tree had come down between two cabins, damaging a third.

From BBC • Mar. 8, 2025

Thousands of the birds are afflicted every year in the region, where they are a fixture in backyards, chattering away as they feast on Moreton Bay figs, gum tree blossoms and countless other plants.

From Scientific American • Jun. 13, 2023

In 2013, a koala population in Cape Otway, Australia, plucked the leaves off every manna gum tree in the area, triggering a die-off of trees and koalas.

From Washington Post • Aug. 23, 2019

For one thing, they planned to pause in the vicinity of an old gum tree no longer there.

From New York Times • Sep. 19, 2015

Grandpa drove the team off to one side of the road and stopped them under a big sweet gum tree.

From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls