conifer

[ koh-nuh-fer, kon-uh- ]

noun

1. any of numerous, chiefly evergreen trees or shrubs of the class Coniferinae (or group Coniferales), including the pine, fir, spruce, and other cone-bearing trees and shrubs, and also the yews and their allies that bear drupelike seeds.
2. a plant producing naked seeds in cones, or single naked seeds as in yews, but with pollen always borne in cones.

conifer

/ ˈkəʊnɪfə; ˈkɒn- /

noun

1. any gymnosperm tree or shrub of the phylum Coniferophyta , typically bearing cones and evergreen leaves. The group includes the pines, spruces, firs, larches, yews, junipers, cedars, cypresses, and sequoias

conifer

/ kŏn′ə-fər /

1. Any of various gymnosperms that bear their reproductive structures in cones and belong to the phylum Coniferophyta. Conifers evolved around 300 million years ago and, as a group, show many adaptations to drier and cooler environments. They are usually evergreen and often have drought-resistant leaves that are needle-shaped or scalelike. They depend on the wind to blow pollen produced by male cones to female cones, where fertilization takes place and seeds develop. Conifers are widely distributed, but conifer species dominate the northern forest biome known as the taiga. There are some 550 species of conifers, including the pines, firs, spruces, hemlocks, cypresses, junipers, yews, and redwoods.
2. See more at pollination

Word History and Origins

Origin of conifer¹

1350–1400; Middle English conefere < Latin cōnifer coniferous, equivalent to cōn ( us ) cone + -i- + -fer -fer

Word History and Origins

Origin of conifer¹

C19: from Latin, from cōnus cone + ferre to bear

Example Sentences

She noted where and when conifer forests began to return, where they didn’t, and where opportunistic invasive species like cheatgrass took over the landscape.

From MIT Technology Review

With her gentle snuffling, the pig helps the man locate truffles as the sun streams through the cathedral of conifers around them.

From Time

Even in systems where fire suppression is responsible for fuel buildup, such as mixed conifer stands in the Rockies and Sierra Nevada, fuel treatments can’t always affect the course of a fire.

From Washington Post

The regional average for mixed conifer forests in the inland region is much lower than the average for similar forests in the coastal region.

From ProPublica

After the fireball, the ferns and conifers largely vanished.

From Science News For Students

Cheryl Brown, former CEO of the Conifer Council in Texas/Arkansas also saw the storm coming.

From The Daily Beast

Thus they encamped near the conifer, and called the place Toha-a-muk-is after the spruce they were afraid to touch.

From Project Gutenberg

It suffices to name the families of the Conifer and the Amentace, which compose the greater portion of the Flora of our forests.

From Project Gutenberg

The family of Conifer exhibit themselves in Australia, like every other group of plants, under strange and novel forms.

From Project Gutenberg

The Australian species are comprised in a small number of families, notably in those of the Conifer and Myrtace.

From Project Gutenberg

Its cones are the largest produced by any conifer, occasionally reaching the length of nearly two feet.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• cedar
• pine