wooden

adjective

wood·​en ˈwu̇-dᵊn How to pronounce wooden (audio)
1
: made or consisting of wood
2
: lacking ease or flexibility : awkwardly stiff
a wooden speech
a wooden performer
woodenly adverb
woodenness noun

Did you know?

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

The guest speaker was wooden and uninspiring. a movie with wooden dialogue
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Dill Pickle Gin & Tonic Grillo’s Pickles started in 2008 out of a wooden cart in downtown Boston. 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

Word History

First Known Use

1538, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of wooden was in 1538

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Cite this Entry

“Wooden.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wooden. Accessed 9 Jul. 2025.

Kids Definition

wooden

adjective
wood·​en ˈwu̇d-ᵊn How to pronounce wooden (audio)
1
: made of wood
a wooden spoon
2
: lacking in spirit, ease, or charm
written in a wooden style
woodenly adverb
woodenness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on wooden

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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