yew

noun

ˈyü 

1

a

: any of a genus (Taxus of the family Taxaceae, the yew family) of evergreen gymnospermous trees and shrubs with stiff linear leaves and seeds surrounded by a fleshy red aril: such as

(1)

: a long-lived Eurasian tree or shrub (T. baccata)

called also English yew

(2)

: a low straggling bush (T. canadensis) of the eastern U.S. and Canada

(3)

: pacific yew

b

: the wood of a yew

especially : the heavy fine-grained wood of the English yew

2

archaic : an archery bow made of yew

Illustration of yew

• yew 1a

Examples of yew in a Sentence

a bow made of yew

Recent Examples on the Web

Medium-sized azaleas make fine foundation plants, offering a bit more pizzazz in spring than the usual yew or boxwood. —Luke Miller, Better Homes & Gardens, 7 July 2025

This action sends forth billowing clouds of gray smoke—pollen, actually—so that the yews do appear, genuinely, to be smoldering. —Caity Weaver, The Atlantic, 5 June 2025

Poisonous berries include American bittersweet, cotoneaster, holly, juniper, pokeweed, and yew. —Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 29 Apr. 2025

Those deer, which have changed from the color of milk chocolate to dark, break through our makeshift deterrents anyway and eat the yew, euonymus, arborvitae, and this winter, even the holly. —Daryln Brewer Hoffstot Kristian Thacker, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English ew, from Old English īw; akin to Old High German īwa yew, Middle Irish eó

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing yew

• English yew
• Pacific yew

Rhymes for yew

• blew
• blue
• boo
• brew
• chew
• chou
• clue
• coo
• coup
• crew
• cue
• dew

Kids Definition

yew

noun

ˈyü 

1

: any of a genus of evergreen trees and shrubs that are gymnosperms with short stiff flattened needlelike leaves and seeds having a red juicy covering

2

: the wood of a yew

especially : the heavy fine-grained wood of an Old World yew that is used especially for bows and small articles

Medical Definition

yew

noun

ˈyü 

: any of a genus (Taxus of the family Taxaceae, the yew family) of evergreen trees and shrubs with stiff linear leaves and seeds surrounded by a fleshy red aril

especially : one (T. brevifolia) of the Pacific coast of the United States and Canada whose bark yields the antineoplastic drug paclitaxel