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red beech

red beech

8.2
A North American tree with light green leaves and edible nuts
  • noun
  • /rɛd biːtʃ/
  • US
translation icon : haya americana
  • The red beech is prized for its attractive foliage and delicious nuts.

Examples

  • Many animals depend on the nuts of the red beech for food in the fall.

  • We hiked through a forest dominated by towering red beeches and maples.

  • The red beech tree produces delicious nuts.

  • Many red beeches can be found in the forest.

  • Many animals depend on the nuts of the red beech for food in the fall.

  • The red beech is prized for its attractive foliage and delicious nuts.

  • We hiked through a forest dominated by towering red beeches and maples.

Synonyms

beech
vsred beech
5 4.3

A large tree with smooth grey bark and small nuts you can eat

is restricted to forests on this continent rather than across the north
beech tree
vsred beech
1 3.0

A large tree with smooth grey bark and small nuts inside a prickly cover

highlights location and leaf color instead of detailed nut husk features
Fagus americana
vsred beech
  • Specialized
9.9

A North American tree with light green leaves and nuts you can eat

is a plain description without naming the species
white beech
vsred beech
  • US
7.4

A North American forest tree with light green leaves and edible nuts

is the neutral descriptive form rather than a named variety
Fagus grandifolia
vsred beech
  • Specialized
8.1

A beech tree from eastern North America with smooth bark and nuts people and animals eat

is a simple descriptive phrase without taxonomic labelling
American beech
vsred beech
  • Specialized
4.9

A North American tree that loses its leaves in autumn, with smooth gray bark and edible nuts

focuses only on general appearance and edible nuts

Surface Forms

red beech singular
red beeches plural

Morphology

red + beech

This is a straightforward adjective + noun composition: a B1 learner who knows 'red' and 'beech' will infer it denotes a type of beech tree characterized by something red (e.g., red-tinted bark or foliage). Such adjective-noun naming of species is compositional and cross-linguistically common, so the overall meaning is predictable from the parts.

Etymology

Red beech may be named because the tree's bark or young leaves sometimes look a little red, so people used red to tell this beech apart from other beeches and to remember which trees gave 'edible nuts'.