understory

American  

[uhn-der-stawr-ee, -stohr-ee] / ˈʌn dərˌstɔr i, -ˌstoʊr i /

noun

1. the shrubs and plants growing beneath the main canopy of a forest.

---

Etymology

Origin of understory

First recorded in 1900–05; under- + story ²

Example Sentences

By keeping fire out of the state’s wildlands altogether, California has grown thick with branches, brush and understory that are now acting as fuel for the state’s ever-larger blazes.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 10, 2025

For decades, tropical ornithologists believed narrow temperature tolerances may have been to blame for the declines of understory birds, but this study suggests otherwise.

From Science Daily • Mar. 14, 2024

You can use these in mixed plantings under your conifers or group a bunch together to form a hedge or thick understory.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 9, 2023

Coffee is an understory plant: It grows best under a canopy of shade-providing trees.

From Salon • Oct. 23, 2023

The trek was rough because we stayed in the forests, where the understory is a jungle of hazelnut, viburnum, and twisted young hardwoods fighting for the sun.

From "On the Far Side of the Mountain" by Jean Craighead George

Related Words

• thicket