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Humans have been making objects out of wood since before there even was an English language, but the adjectival use of "wood" didn't come into being until the 14th century, and "wooden" didn't appear until the 16th. (The word wood has ancient roots, but it originally existed only as a noun.) In Middle English, the adjective of choice was "tree" or "treen," as in a "tree vessel" or "treen shoes." "Treen" in turn came from the Old English word trēowen, from the noun "trēow" ("tree") and the suffix -en, which was used to indicate that something was composed of a certain material. As far as we know, no one ever used "treen" figuratively to describe things that are stiff as a board, but "wooden" was put to broader use soon after it was first recorded.
Examples of wooden in a Sentence
Claudia Alarcón, Forbes.com, 30 June 2025
Unlike stone spear points and wooden spears or throwing sticks, or even wooden boomerangs, this was a tool that would have taken huge amounts of time and work to create—things that are in short supply when your lifestyle is built around mobility.
—ArsTechnica, 30 June 2025
The first contains a rectangular sink with wooden cutting board top and a dual-hob induction cooktop that barely rises above countertop level for a clean look.
—New Atlas, 29 June 2025
Downstairs is an Irish pub with more impressive wood paneling and a wooden coffered ceiling, There is also room for comfortable seating and a pool table.
—James Alexander, Hartford Courant, 29 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for wooden
Cite this Entry
“Wooden.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wooden. Accessed 9 Jul. 2025.
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