service tree

noun

either of two European trees, Sorbus domestica, bearing a small, acid fruit that is edible when overripe, or S. torminalis(wild service tree ), bearing a similar fruit.
serviceberry (defs. 2, 3).

Origin of service tree

First recorded in 1535–45

Words Nearby service tree

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use service tree in a sentence

A service tree laden with sweet red fruit stood in front of her, and she passed it by.
Indian Legends Retold | Elaine Goodale Eastman
In addition to these there are the wild service tree, white beam, and mountain ash, the last called by the old man the rowan.
Poachers and Poaching | John Watson
She had made earrings for herself with the berries of the service-tree.
Sentimental Education Vol 1 | Gustave Flaubert
The general form of the leaf is egg-shaped, while that of the service tree is cordate.
Field and Woodland Plants | William S. Furneaux
Longleaf service tree (Amelanchier obovalis) is by some regarded a variety rather than a species.
American Forest Trees | Henry H. Gibson

British Dictionary definitions for service tree

service tree

noun

Also called: sorb a Eurasian rosaceous tree, Sorbus domestica, cultivated for its white flowers and brown edible apple-like fruits
wild service tree a similar and related Eurasian tree, Sorbus torminalis

Origin of service tree

service, from Old English syrfe, from Vulgar Latin sorbea (unattested), from Latin sorbus sorb

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

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