teak

American  

[teek] / tik /

noun

1. a large East Indian tree, Tectona grandis, of the verbena family, yielding a hard, durable, resinous, yellowish-brown wood used for shipbuilding, making furniture, etc.

2. the wood of this tree.

3. any of various similar trees or woods.

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teak British  

/ tiːk /

noun

1. a large verbenaceous tree, Tectona grandis, of the East Indies, having white flowers and yielding a valuable dense wood

2. the hard resinous yellowish-brown wood of this tree, used for furniture making, etc

3. any of various similar trees or their wood

4. a brown or yellowish-brown colour

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Etymology

Origin of teak

1665–75; earlier teke < Portuguese teca < Malayalam tēkka

Example Sentences

I’d swapped handbags for the season — a slouchy straw tote with a teak handle traded for a forest-green suede pouch — and my wallet, apparently, hadn’t gotten the memo.

From Salon

A teak bed from the Philippines and family mementos help to make the new ADU feel like home.

From Los Angeles Times

The “oversized” primary suite features a “five-fixture bathroom complete with Crema Luna limestone floors and tops, Waterworks fixtures and teak cabinetry.”

From MarketWatch

Customers are increasingly being lured by brands like TimberTech, which dispense with wood altogether in favor of polyvinyl chloride patterned to resemble mahogany, teak, or hickory.

From Barron's

Her favorite is their outdoor table, which Greene crafted from leftover teak and inlaid with gecko leaves, a nod to her late mother’s favorite plant.

From Los Angeles Times