yellowwood

[ yel-oh-wood ]

noun

1. a tree, Cladrastis lutea, of the legume family, native to the southeastern U.S., having clusters of fragrant, white flowers and wood that yields a yellow dye.
2. any of several other trees having yellowish wood or yielding a yellow substance, as Podocarpus elongatus or P. henkelii, of Africa.
3. the wood of any of these trees.

yellowwood

/ ˈjɛləʊˌwʊd /

noun

1. Also called (US)gopherwood any of several leguminous trees of the genus Cladrastis, esp C. lutea, of the southeastern US, having clusters of white flowers and yellow wood yielding a yellow dye
2. Also calledWest Indian satinwood a rutaceous tree, Zanthoxylum flavum, of the Caribbean, with smooth hard wood
3. any of several other trees with yellow wood, esp Podocarpus falcatus, a conifer of southern Africa: family Podocarpaceae
4. the wood of any of these trees

Word History and Origins

Origin of yellowwood¹

First recorded in 1660–70; yellow + wood ¹

Example Sentences

This is something of a problem, and sitting down with his back against a yellowwood-tree he proceeds to think it out.

From Project Gutenberg

Yellowwood (Schaefferia frutescens) is also known as boxwood.

From Project Gutenberg

There were tall timber-trees—yellowwood, sneezewood, essenwood, stinkwood—and the ground was carpeted with thick grass and ferns.

From Project Gutenberg