stinkwood

[ stingk-wood ]

noun

1. any of several trees yielding fetid wood.
2. the wood of any of these trees.

stinkwood

/ ˈstɪŋkˌwʊd /

noun

1. any of various trees having offensive-smelling wood, esp Ocotea bullata, a southern African lauraceous tree yielding a hard wood used for furniture
2. the heavy durable wood of any of these trees
3. Also called (NZ)hupiro a New Zealand shrub or small tree, Coprosma foetidissima , whose leaves give off an unpleasant smell when they are crushed

Word History and Origins

Origin of stinkwood¹

First recorded in 1725–35; stink + wood ¹

Example Sentences

South Africa’s cave openings can be hard to spot, but many have wild olive and white stinkwood trees growing near them.

From The New Yorker

There were camphor trees and teaks and African cedars and red stinkwood trees, and here and there a dark green cloud of leaves mushroomed above the forest canopy.

From Literature

The reason 180 square miles of open grasslands and scattered acacia and stinkwood trees have been given such a resonant honorific—it’s a World Heritage site, no less—lies mostly hidden underground, in the fossil-rich labyrinth of caves and sinkholes that riddle the limestone bedrock.

From National Geographic

Having already returned from an early morning’s filming, Uncle John would sit at the head of a large stinkwood table, pour his muesli, and cut a very ripe banana into it.

From Salon

A great-grandfather of Ms. Robinson’s, a mining engineer who worked for De Beers, brought the stinkwood dining table back from South Africa.

From New York Times