Meanings
plural bo trees
- The peepul tree, Ficus religiosa, regarded as sacred by Hindus and Buddhists.First known use 19th c.
In 1806, the king of Ava gave careful orders for the planting of saplings of the Bo tree [ficus religiosa] brought by monks from Sri Lanka.
2020, Sujit Sivasundaram, Waves Across the South, William Collins, published 2021, page 2211 more example
The same is true of others of the gods; in the old Norse mythology Ygdrasil was the great branching World-Ash, abode of the soul of the universe; the Peepul or Bo-tree in India is very sacred and must on no account be cut down, seeing that gods and spirits dwell among its branches.
1920, Edward Carpenter, Pagan and Christian Creeds, New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co., published 1921, page 79Synonyms: Ficus religiosa, pipal, sacred fig
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe peepul tree, Ficus religiosa, regarded as sacred by Hindus and Buddhists.
More synonyms by meaning
nounfig tree of India noted for great size and longevity; lacks the prop roots of the banyan; regarded as sacred by Buddhists
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Sanskritबोधि“perfect knowledge; tree of wisdom”
- Sinhaleseබෝ
- Englishbo tree
From Sinhalese බෝ (bō) + tree. The first component is from Sanskrit बोधि (bodhi, “perfect knowledge; tree of wisdom”), and thus a doublet of bid in the "offer price" sense.
More words from Sinhalese, Sanskrit
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
bo tree. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bo%20tree
“bo tree.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bo%20tree. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bo tree,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bo%20tree.
Source: bo tree on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.