monkey puzzle

American  

noun

1. a South American, coniferous timber tree, Araucaria araucana, having candelabralike branches, stiff sharp leaves, and edible nuts.

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monkey puzzle British  

noun

1. Also called: Chile pine.  a South American coniferous tree, Araucaria araucana, having branches shaped like a candelabrum and stiff sharp leaves: family Araucariaceae

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Etymology

Origin of monkey puzzle

First recorded in 1865–70; perhaps from the intertwined arrangement of its limbs

Example Sentences

The animal belongs to a herd of hefty herbivores who spend their days lumbering through an open landscape of conifers and gingkos, horsetails and monkey puzzle trees.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 15, 2024

Chile’s famed Araucaria—commonly called monkey puzzle trees—soon appeared, their spiny branches curving jauntily upward like so many cats’ tails.

From Science Magazine • Jul. 6, 2022

Imagine the forests of Chilean Patagonia: wet and cold, dense with monkey puzzle trees and other hardy conifers.

From New York Times • Nov. 7, 2021

The best known is the Norfolk Island pine, sold as a houseplant, though another, the Chilean monkey puzzle tree, has been a botanical curiosity since the 19th century.

From Washington Post • Jan. 21, 2020

They were just past the entrance to the Egyptian Walk, out of the direct sunlight, under the pines and the sprawling monkey puzzle tree.

From "The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman