A deciduous tree of the genus Fagus having smooth gray bark, alternate simple leaves, and three-angled nuts enclosed in prickly burs. The best-known species are F. grandifolia of eastern North America and the European species F. sylvatica and its numerous cultivated forms.
The wood of any of these trees, used for flooring, containers, plywood, and tool handles.
Any of several other woody plants, as in the genera Carpinus and Nothofagus.
[Middle English beche, from Old English bēce; see bhāgo- in Indo-European roots.]
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