arborvitae
/ˌɑɹbɚˈvaɪti/ noun
Forms arborvitaes arbor vitae arborvitæ
- noun Any of several North American or Asian conifers, of the genera Thuja and Thujopsis or the species Platycladus orientalis, grown for timber or ornament.
- noun (anatomy) The white nerve tissue of the cerebellum that has a branching structure.
Synonyms
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.
Sources: Wiktionary — from the Wiktionary entry “arborvitae”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details