western red cedar

American  

noun

1. an arborvitae, Thuja plicata, of western North America, grown as an ornamental.

2. the soft, fragrant, reddish wood of this tree, used in the construction of houses, in shipbuilding, for making boxes, etc.

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western red cedar British  

noun

1. a large North American arbor vitae, Thuja plicata, found along and near the Pacific coast

2. the wood of this tree, used by North American Indians for building and for carving totem poles

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Etymology

Origin of western red cedar

An Americanism dating back to 1900–05

Example Sentences

The remainder were sugar pine, noble fir, red fir, incense cedar, western red cedar, mountain hemlock and western hemlock.

From Science Daily • Dec. 28, 2023

The tips of western red cedar, hemlock and Douglas fir limbs looked as if they were scorched by passing flames just a few days after the Pacific Northwest’s 2021 extreme heat wave.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 13, 2023

He said species like the western red cedar, which is important to both First Nations and the forestry industry, are in decline as a result.

From Reuters • Oct. 13, 2022

Explore an old-growth coastal temperate rainforest with large western red cedar trees and remnant stumps during a 6-mile round-trip hike.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 9, 2022

Unlike that of the western red cedar, the trunk is usually sound to the center.

From The Forests of Mount Rainier National Park by Allen, Grenville F.