guaiac wood
- noun
- /ˈɡwaɪ.æk wʊd/
- Specialized
:
madera de guayaco
- The aromatic oil extracted from guaiac wood is prized in the perfume industry.
Examples
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Traditional medicine sometimes uses guaiac wood for its supposed healing properties.
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Artisans carved intricate figurines out of guaiac wood because of its hardness and beauty.
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The artisan crafted a beautiful table from guaiac wood.
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I love the scent of guaiac wood in perfumes.
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Artisans carved intricate figurines out of guaiac wood because of its hardness and beauty.
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The aromatic oil extracted from guaiac wood is prized in the perfume industry.
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I love the scent of guaiac wood in perfumes.
Synonyms
1
9.9
Very hard greenish-brown wood from a tropical tree used for strong handles and medicines
A hard, strongly scented wood from tropical trees used for oil, carving and medicine
A very hard dark wood from a tropical tree used to make strong tools and furniture
Very hard wood from a Caribbean tree used for tools and boat parts
How Dense
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase simply denotes the wood (heartwood) of the guaiac tree, so a learner who knows the nouns 'guaiac' and 'wood' can directly compose the meaning. There is no idiomatic or metaphorical shift—it's a straightforward noun + noun compound used literally, making it predictable across languages and transparent to learners.
Etymology
Guaiac wood comes from the very hard, oily heart of the guaiac tree; the wood gives a strong smell when cut, and people pressed its oil for 'perfume' and 'medicine'. So 'guaiac wood' now means the dense, fragrant wood used to make scents and healing products.