eucalyptus

[ yoo-kuh-lip-tuhs ]

noun,plural eu·ca·lyp·ti

[yoo-kuh-lip-tahy], /ˌyu kəˈlɪp taɪ/, eu·ca·lyp·tus·es.

any of numerous often tall trees belonging to the genus Eucalyptus, of the myrtle family, native to Australia and adjacent islands, having aromatic evergreen leaves that are the source of medicinal oils and heavy wood used as timber.

Origin of eucalyptus

1800–10; <New Latin <Greek eu-eu- + kalyptós covered, wrapped, akin to kalýptein to cover

Also eu·ca·lypt [yoo-kuh-lipt]. /ˈyu kəˌlɪpt/.

Other words from eucalyptus

eu·ca·lyp·tic, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use eucalyptus in a sentence

There was a cry of admiration at sight of the eucalyptuses, two hundred feet high, whose spongy bark was five inches in thickness.
In Search of the Castaways | Jules Verne
But the big, swift-growing eucalyptuses and Monterey pines have crowded out many of the other more tender and less-pushing kinds.
Insect Stories | Vernon L. Kellogg

British Dictionary definitions for eucalyptus

eucalyptus

eucalypt (ˈjuːkəˌlɪpt)

/ (ˌjuːkəˈlɪptəs) /

nounplural -lyptuses, -lypti (-ˈlɪptaɪ) or -lypts

any myrtaceous tree of the mostly Australian genus Eucalyptus, such as the blue gum and ironbark, widely cultivated for the medicinal oil in their leaves (eucalyptus oil), timber, and ornament

Origin of eucalyptus

C19: New Latin, from eu- + Greek kaluptos covered, from kaluptein to cover, hide

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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