sequoia

noun

se·​quoia si-ˈkwȯi-ə How to pronounce sequoia (audio)
: either of two huge coniferous California trees of the bald cypress family that may reach a height of over 300 feet (90 meters):

Examples of sequoia in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web On their reservation, the Tule River Indian Tribe has been managing eight sequoia groves for 40 years. WIRED, 18 Nov. 2023 These conditions are capable of stoking hotter, faster-moving fires that can race up into the crowns of sequoias, incinerating the massive trees. Alex Wigglesworth, Los Angeles Times, 1 Nov. 2023 Are California’s redwoods and sequoias unusual in how limited their habitats are? Soumya Karlamangla, New York Times, 31 Oct. 2023 Tenaya at Yosemite, set deep in the sequoia forest, is also open in November with a variety of accommodations including suites, cabins, and cottages. Patricia Doherty, Travel + Leisure, 24 July 2023 The containment of the fire, which at one point was inching dangerously close to the park's large sequoia grove Mariposa Grove, allowed the southern entrance of the park to open Saturday morning. Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 23 July 2022 Research shows that such efforts help prevent extremely hot fires that can reach the sequoia canopy. WIRED, 18 Nov. 2023 Without action to restore these lands to something more closely resembling their precolonial conditions, many more sequoias will be lost, the experts fear. Alex Wigglesworth, Los Angeles Times, 1 Nov. 2023 And in the span of just 15 months in 2020 and 2021, horrific wildfires in California killed as much as 19 percent of the world’s sequoias. Soumya Karlamangla, New York Times, 31 Oct. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sequoia.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, genus name, from Sequoya (George Guess)

First Known Use

circa 1866, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of sequoia was circa 1866

Dictionary Entries Near sequoia

Cite this Entry

“Sequoia.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sequoia. Accessed 7 Dec. 2023.

Kids Definition

sequoia

noun
se·​quoia si-ˈkwȯi-(y)ə How to pronounce sequoia (audio)
: either of two huge cone-bearing California trees that are related to the bald cypresses and may grow to a height of over 300 feet (90 meters):
b

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