pencil pine

noun

Athrotaxis cupressoides, a tree native to Tasmania.

First used 19th c.
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Meanings

nounpencil pine (plural pencil pines)

plural pencil pines

  1. Athrotaxis cupressoides, a tree native to Tasmania.First known use 19th c.

    The fire began spreading & the surrounding pencil pines & then the forest beyond was in flames […].

    2001, Richard Flanagan, Gould's Book of Fish, Vintage, published 2016, page 385
  2. Cupressus sempervirens, a cypress native to the eastern Mediterranean region and widely planted as an ornamental.

Origin

From its narrow, pointed shape.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

pencil pine. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pencil%20pine

MLA

“pencil pine.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pencil%20pine. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “pencil pine,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pencil%20pine.

Source: pencil pine on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.