eucalyptus

noun

eu·​ca·​lyp·​tus ˌyü-kə-ˈlip-təs 

plural eucalypti ˌyü-kə-ˈlip-ˌtī  -ˌtē  or eucalyptuses

: any of a genus (Eucalyptus) of mostly Australian evergreen trees or rarely shrubs of the myrtle family that have rigid entire leaves and umbellate flowers and are widely cultivated for their gums, resins, oils, and woods

Examples of eucalyptus in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The oil of lemon eucalyptus provided similar protections against mosquitoes when compared to DEET, one 2016 review determined. —Caroline C. Boyle, USA TODAY, 7 July 2024

At another restoration site where eucalyptus trees were downed in August 2022, native plants sprout from holes in a foot-thick layer of eucalyptus wood chips. —Alix Soliman, Hartford Courant, 3 Jan. 2024

Rich eucalyptus, Macassar ebony, and Tanganyika veneers play against sleek onyx and marble, while warm ochre leather juxtaposes with shiny brass and chrome details. —Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 1 July 2024

Bunches of eucalyptus also work as a great substitute. —Nora Taylor, Architectural Digest, 27 June 2024

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin, genus name, from Greek eu- eu- + kalyptós "covered," verbal adjective of kalýptein "to cover, protect, conceal"; so named for the operculum that covers the developing buds — more at apocalypse

Note: The genus name was introduced by the French botanist Charles Louis L'Héritier de Brutelle (1746-1800) in Sertum Anglicum, seu Plantae rariores quæ in hortis juxta Londinum, imprimis in Horto Regio Kewensi excoluntur (London, 1788), p. 11. According to E.V. Slee et al., EUCLID: Eucalypts of Australia, 3rd edition (online publication), the specimen of Eucalyptus obliqua which L'Héritier described in Kew Gardens had been procured in 1777 by the botanical collector David Nelson at Adventure Bay, Bruny Island, Tasmania, on James Cook's third voyage to the Pacific.

First Known Use

1801, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

eucalyptus

noun

eu·​ca·​lyp·​tus ˌyü-kə-ˈlip-təs 

plural eucalypti -ˌtī 

-ˌtē

or eucalyptuses

: any of a genus of mostly Australian evergreen trees of the myrtle family including many that are widely cultivated for their gums, resins, oils, and useful woods

Medical Definition

eucalyptus

noun

eu·​ca·​lyp·​tus ˌyü-kə-ˈlip-təs 

1

capitalized : a genus of mostly Australian evergreen trees or rarely shrubs of the myrtle family that have rigid entire leaves and umbellate flowers and are widely cultivated for their gums, resins, oils, and useful woods

2

plural eucalypti -ˌtī  -ˌtē  or eucalyptuses : any tree or shrub of the genus Eucalyptus

eucalyptus adjective