1
: a Hawaiian timber tree (Acacia koa) with crescent-shaped phyllodes and pale yellow flowers borne in small round heads
2
: the fine-grained red wood of the koa used especially for furniture
Examples of koa in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The office overlooks the river, but the warm and impressive room stands out as much for its shimmering koa wood paneling, master carpenter work and box ceiling than anything else.
—
David Caraccio, Sacramento Bee, 15 Feb. 2025
Since 2014, guests have planted more than 50,000 koa trees in the resort’s sustainable forest, which spans over 100 acres and is covered with endemic trees.
—Sarah Sekula, Travel + Leisure, 7 July 2024
On land, the resort has planted over 50,000 indigenous koa trees, in partnership with the Hawaiian Legacy Reforestation Initiative, to help offset the carbon from stays in its rooms and private villas.
—Hugh Garvey, Sunset Magazine, 1 Jan. 2024
Under the canopy of a koa tree, in an open-air cookhouse built of lava rocks gathered from the eruption of Mauna Loa in 1855, sit a scuba instructor, a lawyer, several retirees, and their children and grandchildren.
—Hugh Garvey, Sunset Magazine, 6 Nov. 2023
Smith also hopes to raze the invasive trees there and plant koa and other native species that could someday provide wood for his grandchildren to work with.
—Karin Brulliard, Washington Post, 11 Sep. 2023
Taylor also has a commitment to sustainability, partnering with a Hawaiian wood supplier to plant nearly 150,000 native koa and other trees this decade to supply all the wood for their Koa guitars.
—Red Fabbri, Travel + Leisure, 17 June 2022
Other pathways in the park, like the easy 1.2-mile Kipukapuaulu Trail, which cuts through an old koa and ohia forest, are often uncrowded, even during summer and fall months.
—Catherine Toth Fox, Outside Online, 9 Mar. 2020
While Junior and Tani track down the thief who robbed his parents’ home, the team investigates the murder of a beloved philanthropist and the theft of his ultra-valuable koa tree.
—Chuck Barney, Detroit Free Press, 16 Nov. 2019
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David Caraccio, Sacramento Bee, 15 Feb. 2025
Since 2014, guests have planted more than 50,000 koa trees in the resort’s sustainable forest, which spans over 100 acres and is covered with endemic trees.
—Sarah Sekula, Travel + Leisure, 7 July 2024
On land, the resort has planted over 50,000 indigenous koa trees, in partnership with the Hawaiian Legacy Reforestation Initiative, to help offset the carbon from stays in its rooms and private villas.
—Hugh Garvey, Sunset Magazine, 1 Jan. 2024
Under the canopy of a koa tree, in an open-air cookhouse built of lava rocks gathered from the eruption of Mauna Loa in 1855, sit a scuba instructor, a lawyer, several retirees, and their children and grandchildren.
—Hugh Garvey, Sunset Magazine, 6 Nov. 2023
Smith also hopes to raze the invasive trees there and plant koa and other native species that could someday provide wood for his grandchildren to work with.
—Karin Brulliard, Washington Post, 11 Sep. 2023
Taylor also has a commitment to sustainability, partnering with a Hawaiian wood supplier to plant nearly 150,000 native koa and other trees this decade to supply all the wood for their Koa guitars.
—Red Fabbri, Travel + Leisure, 17 June 2022
Other pathways in the park, like the easy 1.2-mile Kipukapuaulu Trail, which cuts through an old koa and ohia forest, are often uncrowded, even during summer and fall months.
—Catherine Toth Fox, Outside Online, 9 Mar. 2020
While Junior and Tani track down the thief who robbed his parents’ home, the team investigates the murder of a beloved philanthropist and the theft of his ultra-valuable koa tree.
—Chuck Barney, Detroit Free Press, 16 Nov. 2019
Cite this Entry
“Koa.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/koa. Accessed 13 Jul. 2025.
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