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to tree

to tree

1 9.3
To force a person or animal up a tree so they cannot escape
  • verb
  • /triː/
  • US
: hacer subir a un árbol
  • A simple rule that he would always follow, which is that you, you, you send the hero up a tree, you throw rocks at him and then you try to get him down.
  • tree a coon
  • treed by hounds

Examples

  • If his fraternity brothers find out, they'll tree him and torture him.

  • I am sure, sure... ...that you will help us tree these swine.

  • Now he's treeing possums In the Promised Land

  • He heard the deep voices of the hounds "treeing" far away.

    Fiction book (1996)
  • Treeing a squirrel!

    Blog text (10)
  • That dog Elmer was so smart that if Buford showed him a piece of oak board or a joint of pine siding, he'd take off and tree a coon, which when the hide was skinned off and stretched would exactly fill out that length of wood.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • The hunters trained their dogs to tree the raccoon by chasing it up into the branches.

  • After a long chase, the dogs finally managed to tree the squirrel, making it impossible for the animal to escape.

  • He watched as his hunting dogs tree the fox, barking excitedly at the base of the tree where it had climbed.

Synonyms

to corner
vsto tree
69 4.9

To force a person or animal into a place they cannot leave

force into a high or trapped position that prevents escape

Idioms

14 6.5

To be wrong about who or what caused something

Children often look and behave like their parents

up a tree
  • Informal
1 8.6

To be in a difficult situation with no easy way out

To leave a place quickly, often as a joke

A joking way to say that someone looks very ugly

Look suddenly very happy and excited

Become covered in many bright lights for decoration

9.8

To tell someone to go away and stop annoying you

off one's tree
  • Offensive
9.9

To behave in a very strange and unreasonable way

9.9

To be finished and unable to continue working or succeeding

To make people react to show hidden problems

To make ripe fruit or other things fall from a tree by moving its branches quickly

up a gum tree
  • Australian
9.8

In a difficult situation with no easy way out

Compounds

155 1.0

An evergreen tree decorated with lights and ornaments for Christmas

58 1.0

A tall tree with one straight trunk and big leaves at the top

56 1.4

A small building or platform in the branches of a tree where children play

53 2.7

A picture that shows how people in a family are related over generations

39 1.0

A large strong tree with leaves that have deep rounded edges and small nuts called acorns

31 1.0

A tall evergreen tree with needle leaves and cones

24 1.0

A tree that grows round sweet fruits called apples

big tree
  • Specialized
22 3.5

A very tall evergreen tree from California, for example a giant sequoia

22 5.1

The highest level on a mountain or near the poles where trees stop growing

19 1.0

The main hard part of a tree above the ground that holds branches and leaves

17 1.0

A part of a tree that grows from the trunk and holds leaves or fruit

15 1.0

A tree that grows fruit you can eat

tree hugger
  • Offensive
15 8.2

A person who wants to protect trees and nature, sometimes used as an insult

13 1.0

A tree or shrub that grows small round fruit with one hard stone

10 1.8

A short part of a tree that remains in the ground after it is cut down

9 1.4

A small tree that keeps its leaves all year and makes olives for food and oil

9 1.3

A tree that grows sweet pear-shaped fruit you can eat

6 2.0

A tall evergreen tree with soft needles often used for holiday decoration

6 1.0

A small evergreen tree that grows yellow sour fruit used in cooking

6 1.0

A tall tropical palm that grows coconuts near the coast

5 3.4

A small frog that lives in trees with sticky pads on its toes for climbing

5 1.4

A tree with long, thin branches and narrow leaves that often grows near water

5 1.0

A tree that grows round sweet fruit you can eat

4 1.5

A large tropical tree that grows sweet, juicy, oval fruit

A tall tree from Australia with leaves that smell strong and bark that peels

4 2.1

A tree with thin white bark that peels and slender branches

4 2.1

A large tree with broad leaves and strong wood often planted in parks and streets for shade

tree of knowledge
  • Literature
4 9.8

The tree in the Garden of Eden whose fruit made Adam and Eve able to tell right from wrong

4 1.4

A large tropical plant that grows bananas

4 3.5

A tall evergreen tree with dark, flat leaves and small round cones

4 2.2

A large tree that gives shade from the sun

4 1.0

A tree that makes sweet, juicy fruit called pears

A large tree that makes nuts you can eat in prickly cases and has leaves that turn brown in autumn

tree-hugging
  • Informal
3 7.7

Supporting strong protection of nature, often by public action

3 1.0

A tree that grows sweet, juicy peaches

3 6.5

A large tree from India whose branches grow roots that become new trunks

3 2.7

A large tree that loses its leaves and produces edible nuts people eat

3 3.0

An area where people grow trees to sell for wood or as Christmas trees

3 2.5

A tall tree with leaves made of several small parts, grown for wood and in gardens

2 5.5

A person who cares for and treats damaged or sick trees

2 3.0

A tall tree that grows quickly with light wood and long hanging catkins

2 2.8

A South American tree that gives a sticky white liquid used to make natural rubber

2 2.8

A large evergreen tree with strong, fragrant wood used for furniture

2 1.1

A tree that grows plums you can eat

A tree that makes flowers

2 1.0

A tropical tree that grows large green fruit called avocado

2 2.7

A tree that makes nuts you can eat and strong wood for furniture

2 3.0

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

A small animal with a bushy tail that lives mainly in trees

2 4.8

A large branching desert plant with spiky leaves and white flower clusters that grows in the southwestern United States

2 3.7

A tree that makes a sticky, sweet-smelling sap like eucalyptus

A tree that grows sweet orange fruit eaten in autumn

1 6.1

A large tree with pale, peeling bark, broad leaves, and round seed balls that gives shade

A tree that makes small dark fruit like blackberries

1 2.3

A tree that grows juicy fruits like oranges, lemons, or limes

1 4.5

A small tree with bright white or pink flowers in clusters

1 6.2

A large leafy tree with heart-shaped leaves and sweet-smelling yellow flowers often planted for shade

1 4.4

An American tree with strong wood used for furniture that produces edible nuts

1 2.1

A tree that grows nuts you can eat

tree kangaroo
  • Australian
1 6.9

An animal like a kangaroo that lives in trees in New Guinea and northern Australia

1 5.2

A tall North American tree that has large yellow and green tulip-shaped flowers and soft pale wood for furniture

1 2.7

A small tree with pink or white flowers that produces edible nuts

1 3.0

A large tree with heart-shaped leaves and sweet-smelling flowers used for timber

1 6.0

A small animal like a frog that lives in trees and has sticky pads on its toes

A small tree that produces large red fruit with many seeds

1 2.0

A tree that grows small green fruits called limes

1 8.4

A small tree with dark red wood, fragrant leaves, and berries

1 6.1

A tree with wide branches and small groups of flowers

1 7.4

A small insect that eats tree leaves, bark, or wood and damages the tree

1 5.6

The highest level of success in a job or field

1 4.2

A slow-moving animal that lives in trees in Central and South America and hangs upside down to eat leaves

A tree with needle-like leaves that has cones, like a pine or spruce

1 6.3

A small tree that grows orange fruits with sweet skin and sour inside

Surface Forms

tree infinitive
treed past
treed past participle
treeing present participle
trees third person singular

Etymology

The verb tree meaning 'to force up a tree' comes from hunting, when dogs would chase an animal until it climbed a real tree and could not get down. So to be treed now means to be driven into a place where you cannot escape.