Agathis

noun

Ag·​a·​this

ˈa-gə-thəs

: a small genus of evergreen trees (family Araucariaceae) chiefly of Australasia and the Philippines that are distinguished from members of the genus Araucaria by having larger leaves with flat stalks and the seed free from the cone scale and are valued for their wood and fragrant resins

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin, borrowed from Greek agathís "ball of thread"; so named from the globe-shaped seed cones

First Known Use

1821, in the meaning defined above

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