plywood

American  

[plahy-wood] / ˈplaɪˌwʊd /

noun

• plywoods
  plural

1. a material used for various building purposes, consisting usually of an odd number of layers of wood veneer glued over each other, such that the wood grain of each layer is perpendicular to the layers surrounding it.

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plywood British  

/ ˈplaɪˌwʊd /

noun

1. a structural board consisting of an odd number of thin layers of wood glued together under pressure, with the grain of one layer at right angles to the grain of the adjoining layer

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• plywoods
  plural

Etymology

Origin of plywood

First recorded in 1905–10; ply ² + wood ¹

Explanation

Plywood is a building material that's made from layers of wood that are glued together. This construction means that plywood is very strong and resistant to chipping or warping. There are many kinds of plywood, and even more ways to use it. Plywood made from soft woods is used for sub-flooring in new homes and packaging of various kinds. Harder plywood can be made into furniture, walls, cabinets, stereo speakers, and sports equipment. The layers (or plies) in a piece of plywood are glued together with the grain direction alternating, which makes it sturdy even when it's thin.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

plywood plywoods

"If you're building a new home, on plywood, if you're replacing your floor, on veneers, if you're getting married, on cut flowers, if you're going out fishing, on fishing poles," he said.

From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026

The Canadian goods facing new 50% U.S. tariffs as of early Saturday include construction materials such as cement, paints, plywood, medium-density fiberboard and particle board.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 24, 2026

The tariffs cover a slice of imports from Canada that include plywood, liquor, and hockey gear.

From Barron's ● Aug. 22, 2026

But the cluster of blue-paneled, four-story apartment buildings—constructed by a Turkish contractor—quickly crumbled into piles of twisted metal and plywood when the earthquakes rocked Venezuela’s northern coast.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026

In an unassuming storeroom filled with dropcloths and pallets and crates, behind a sheet of plywood, the mineralogist reveals a simple combination safe that the assistant director opens rather easily.

From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr

Three-fourths of the casein consumed in the U.S. goes into making coated papers, the rest into plywoods, plastics, water paints, leather finishes, etc.

From Time Magazine Archive