red oak

noun

1

: any of various North American oaks (such as Quercus rubra and Quercus falcata) that have acorns with the inner surface of the shell lined with woolly hairs, the acorn cap covered with thin scales, and leaf veins that usually run beyond the margin of the leaf to form bristles

2

: the wood of a red oak

Examples of red oak in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Bacon Hollow and Stony Man Overlook are among the best spots from which to take in the buttery yellow hickories, chili pepper–red oaks, and maples in every shade. —Chloe Arrojado, AFAR Media, 25 Aug. 2025

Jaron’s acorns had become tall red oaks, higher than the house. —Annie Proulx, New Yorker, 10 Aug. 2025

Similarly, our younger trees — loquat, cedar elm, pomegranate, Eastern red cedar, red oak, bigtooth maple, flame-leaf sumacs and the motte of live oaks — are doing fairly well. —Michael Barnes, Austin American Statesman, 2 July 2025

Warm Oak Cabinets Are Back—and More Modern Than Ever Best Wall Colors for Wood Cabinets with Red Undertones To balance ruddy brown tones in cherry and red oak cabinetry, designer Sarah Kahn Turner of Jennifer Gilmer Kitchen & Bath goes for warm, saturated colors tempered with gray. —Monika Biegler Eyers, Better Homes & Gardens, 16 June 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1634, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for red oak

• awoke
• baroque
• bespoke
• colloque
• convoke
• evoke
• invoke
• keystroke
• kinfolk
• kinsfolk
• menfolk
• provoke

Kids Definition

red oak

noun

1

: any of various North American oaks with acorns that take two years to mature and leaves with bristles on the edge

2

: the wood of a red oak