Yew

4 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Yew \Yew\ ([=u]), a.
     Of or pertaining to yew trees; made of the wood of a yew
     tree; as, a yew whipstock.
     [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:



  Yew \Yew\ ([=u]), v. i.
     See {Yaw}.
     [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Yew \Yew\, n. [OE. ew, AS. e['o]w, [imac]w, eoh; akin to D. ijf,
     OHG. [imac]wa, [imac]ha, G. eibe, Icel. [=y]r; cf. Ir.
     iubhar, Gael. iubhar, iughar, W. yw, ywen, Lith. j["e]va the
     black alder tree.]
     [1913 Webster]
     1. (Bot.) An evergreen tree ({Taxus baccata}) of Europe,
        allied to the pines, but having a peculiar berrylike fruit
        instead of a cone. It frequently grows in British
        churchyards.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. The wood of the yew. It is light red in color, compact,
        fine-grained, and very elastic. It is preferred to all
        other kinds of wood for bows and whipstocks, the best for
        these purposes coming from Spain.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     Note: The {American yew} ({Taxus baccata}, var. Canadensis)
           is a low and straggling or prostrate bush, never
           forming an erect trunk. The {California yew} ({Taxus
           brevifolia}, also called {Pacific yew}) is a good-sized
           tree, and its wood is used for bows, spear handles,
           paddles, and other similar implements; the anticancer
           agent {taxol} is obtained from its bark. Another yew is
           found in Florida, and there are species in Japan and
           the Himalayas.
           [1913 Webster + PJC]
  
     3. A bow for shooting, made of the yew.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  yew
       n 1: wood of a yew; especially the durable fine-grained light
            brown or red wood of the English yew valued for
            cabinetwork and archery bows
       2: any of numerous evergreen trees or shrubs having red
          cup-shaped berries and flattened needlelike leaves