pepper tree

noun

any of several chiefly South American, evergreen trees belonging to the genus Schinus, of the cashew family, cultivated in subtropical regions as an ornamental.

Origin of pepper tree

First recorded in 1685–95

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for pepper tree

Historical Examples of pepper tree

Two men, whom I had not noticed before, had been sharing with me the shade of the pepper-tree.
The Bandolero
Mayne Reid
In this second wall, near the pepper-tree, was the home of our two monkeys Jack and Jill.
Strange Teas, Dinners, Weddings and Fetes
Various
The leaves and bark of this tree have a hot biting cinnamon-like taste on which account it is vulgarly called the pepper-tree.
Three Expeditions into the Interior of Eastern Australia, Vol 2 (of 2)
Thomas Mitchell
Polly tied Blanquita to the pepper-tree, caught her habit in one hand, and ran up the walnut-tree avenue to the Nobles' house.
Polly Oliver's Problem
Kate Douglas Smith Wiggin
The pepper-tree abounds in Santa Barbara, and the eucalyptus is being planted a good deal.
Life at Puget Sound: With Sketches of Travel in Washington Territory, British Columbia, Oregon and California
Caroline C. Leighton

British Dictionary definitions for pepper tree

pepper tree

noun

Also called: mastic tree any of several evergreen anacardiaceous trees of the chiefly South American genus Schinus, esp S. molle, having yellowish-white flowers and bright red ornamental fruits

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