gray birch

noun

1

: a small birch (Betula populifolia) of northeastern North America that has many lateral branches, grayish-white bark, triangular leaves, and soft weak wood and that occurs especially in old fields reverting to woodland

2

: yellow birch

Examples of gray birch in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

For example, a swamp white oak or bald-cypress tree can handle the sticky, often wet clay soil common in the Chicago region, but a gray birch needs better drainage. —Beth Botts, Chicago Tribune, 2 Feb. 2025

By planting wild indigo, gray birch, and switchgrass, his goal was to take a chunk of the Catskills and put it on his roof. —The Editors, Outside Online, 10 Nov. 2020

Word History

First Known Use

1846, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for gray birch

• recherche
• research
• interchurch
• lurch
• perch
• search