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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.
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Examples of wooden in a Sentence
Clio Chang, Curbed, 13 Dec. 2024
The wooden beams and exposed stone apertures in the walls remind you of the heritage that lies in the bones of the house.
—Angelina Villa-Clarke, Forbes, 12 Dec. 2024
Photograph: Parker Hall Infrared saunas use infrared heating panels to heat your body directly rather than passively heating the wooden room.
—Parker Hall, WIRED, 11 Dec. 2024
Its soft glow and wooden details are sure to provide the right kind of warm winter lighting for any guest bedroom.
—Sophia Beams, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 Dec. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Wooden.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wooden. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.
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