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

Nearly 87% of all red oaks in the study were documented with acorns compared to a historical average of 57%. —Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 5 May 2025

Japanese maples are also slow-growing by their nature, so that 5-, 10-, or 20-gallon specimen took extra time to make ready for market compared to a live oak or red oak, for example. —Neil Sperry, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 Apr. 2025

In the fall, the park is lit with the bright yellow of towering green ash trees and the russet of red oaks. —Colleen Creamer, Chicago Tribune, 5 Mar. 2025

For example, one of the red oaks on the trail is 142 inches in circumference. —Carl R. Gold, Baltimore Sun, 13 Jan. 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