Dictionary

arborvitae en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• [ˌɑɹbɚˈvaɪɾi]
• [ˌɑɹbɚˈvəɪɾi] Canadian raising
• /ˌɑɹbɚˈvaɪti/
• /ˌɑɹbɚˈvaɪtə/
• (Southern-England) audio

Etymology

From Latin arbor (“tree”) + vitae (“of life”), literally “tree of life”, probably referring to the evergreen leaves. The anatomical sense from the branched, tree-like appearance of the tissue.

Meanings

1. Any of several North American or Asian conifers, of the genera Thuja and Thujopsis or the species Platycladus orientalis, grown for timber or ornament.
   • She was at that moment just outside the door, and from the position of the Colonel, framed between the pillars at the other end of the piazza and against the dark green foliage of an arborvitae standing beyond. 1862, Henry Morford, Shoulder-Straps […] , Philadelphia: T.B. Peterson & Bros.:
2. The white nerve tissue of the cerebellum that has a branching structure.

Forms

Synonyms

tree of life

Translations (7)

pl drzewo życia (white nerve tissue of the cerebellum) · pl tuja (conifer — see also thuja) · tr mazı (conifer — see also thuja) · cs zerav (conifer — see also thuja) · de Lebensbaum (conifer — see also thuja) · pt árvore da vida (white nerve tissue of the cerebellum) · pl żywotnik (conifer — see also thuja)