Emily Dickinson Lexicon

TREE, n. [Sax. treo, treow; Dan. træ; Sw. trä, wood, and träd, a tree; Gr. δρυς; Slav. drevo; Sans. druh, or drus. Qu. W. dar, an oak; Sans. taru, a tree. It is not easy to ascertain the real original orthography; most probably it was as in the Swedish or Greek.]

1. A plant whose stem or stock is woody, branched and perennial, and above a certain size. Trees and shrubs differ only in size, and there is no absolute limit between them. When a plant of the above description is more than eight or ten feet high and not climbing, it is generally called a tree. When it is less than this it is called a shrub; but there are many exceptions to this, on both sides. Trees are of various kinds; as, nuciferous, or nut-bearing trees; bacciferous, or berry-bearing; coniferous, or cone-bearing, &c. Some are forest-trees, and useful for timber or fuel; others are fruit-trees, and cultivated in gardens and orchards; others are used chiefly for shade and ornament.
2. Something resembling a tree, consisting of a stem or stalk and branches; as, a genealogical tree.
3. In ship-building, pieces of timber are called chess-trees, cross-trees, roof-trees, tressed-trees, &c.
4. In Scripture, a cross. Jesus, whom they slew and hanged on a tree. Acts x.
5. Wood. [Obs.] Wick.