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DictionarybirchTree
noun / verb

birch

BURCH/bɜːrtʃ/

A slender tree with peeling bark and small leaves.

Thin strips of pale bark peel from the birch.

A single birch tree with papery white bark peeling into thin curls and fine branches bearing small serrated green leaves; a low leafy branch brings the identifying details close to view.
Etymology
birchOld Englishbirch tree

Old English beorc already named the birch. Its deeper ancestry connects the name with brightness or whiteness, referring to the tree’s distinctive bark.

In context

Peter Collin19:53
often known as popler or pole uh that includes Quaking Aspen and Big Tooth Aspen this is a quaking aspen here people sometimes mistake this for Birch cuz uh Paper Birch and River Birch will be white
Tree Identification - Northeastern Hardwoods

More examples

  • The cabinet is made of smooth birch.
  • Young birches line the edge of the clearing.
  • The historical account describes pupils being birched as punishment.

Forms

birch · birches · birched · birching

Similar words

aspen
A different tree that can also have pale bark.
beech
A different hardwood tree with typically smooth gray bark.