Meanings
sycamore1
plural sycamores · alternative sycomore
- UScountableuncountableAny of several North American plane trees, of the genus Platanus, especially Platanus occidentalis (American sycamore), distinguished by its mottled bark which flakes off in large irregular masses.
On his dark face were white sycamore patches.
1976 September, Saul Bellow, Humboldt’s Gift, New York, N.Y.: Avon Books, →ISBN, page 4081 more example
Stars shining bright above you / Night breezes seem to whisper, I love you / Birds singin' in the sycamore trees
1931, “Dream a Little Dream of Me”, Gus Kahn (lyrics), Fabian Andre and Wilbur Schwandt (music) - UKcountableuncountableA large British and European species of maple, Acer pseudoplatanus, known in North America as the sycamore maple.
The thronged boughs of the shadowy sycamore / Still bear young leaflets half the summer through
1899, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, “The Day-Dream”, in Pictures & poems - countableuncountableoriginallyA large tree bearing edible fruit, Ficus sycomorus, allied to the common fig, found in Egypt and Syria.
Synonyms: sycomore, sycomore fig, fig-mulberry
Sycamore2
- A number of places in the United States:
- Former name of Herndon, California.
- A minor city in Turner County, Georgia.
- A city, the county seat of DeKalb County, Illinois.
- An unincorporated community in Jackson Township, Howard County, Indiana.
- A minor city in Jefferson County, Kentucky.
- A village in Wyandot County, Ohio.
- A town in Allendale County, South Carolina.
- A number of townships in the United States, listed under Sycamore Township.
Synonyms & antonyms
nounAny of several North American plane trees, of the genus Platanus, especially Platanus occidentalis (American sycamore), distinguished by its mottled bark which flakes off in large irregular masses.
nounA large tree bearing edible fruit, Ficus sycomorus, allied to the common fig, found in Egypt and Syria.
More synonyms by meaning
nounvariably colored and sometimes variegated hard tough elastic wood of a sycamore tree
nounany of several trees of the genus Platanus having thin pale bark that scales off in small plates and lobed leaves and ball-shaped heads of fruits
nounEurasian maple tree with pale grey bark that peels in flakes like that of a sycamore tree; leaves with five ovate lobes yellow in autumn
nounthick-branched wide-spreading tree of Africa and adjacent southwestern Asia often buttressed with branches rising from near the ground; produces cluster of edible but inferior figs on short leafless twigs; the biblical sycamore
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Ancient Greekσῡκόμορος
- Latinsȳcomorus
- Old Frenchsicamor
- Middle Englishsicamour
- Englishsycamore
Circa 1350 as Middle English sicamour, from Old French sicamor, from Latin sȳcomorus, from Ancient Greek σῡκόμορος (sūkómoros, literally “fig-mulberry”), from σῦκον (sûkon, “fig”) + μόρον (móron, “mulberry”). Possibly influenced by Hebrew שִׁקְמָה (shikmá, “fig-mulberry”). In the 16th c. applied to the European maple (Acer pseudoplatanus), in the early 19th c. to various plane tree species introduced to North America, perhaps in analogy to their shadiness.
More words from Middle English, Old French, Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek πλάτανος, συκόμορος
- πλάτανος (plátanos)Platanus
- συκόμορος (sukómoros)Ficus sycomorus
Arabic جُمَّيْز
- جُمَّيْز (jummayz)Platanus
Bulgarian чинар, платан
- чинар (činar)Platanus
- платан (platan)Platanus
- черничева смокиня (černičeva smokinja)Ficus sycomorus
Catalan plàtan
- plàtanPlatanus
Chinese Mandarin 懸鈴木 /悬铃木, 美桐
- 懸鈴木 /悬铃木 (xuánlíngmù)Platanus
- 美桐 (měitóng)Platanus
Czech platan
- platanPlatanus
Dutch plataan, wilde vijgenboom
- plataanPlatanus
- wilde vijgenboomFicus sycomorus
Esperanto sikomoro
- sikomoroFicus sycomorus
Estonian plataanid, plaatanid
- plataanidPlatanus
- plaatanidPlatanus
- plataanFicus sycomorus
- plaatanFicus sycomorus
Finnish plataani, amerikanplataani
- plataaniPlatanus
- amerikanplataaniPlatanus
- lännenplataaniPlatanus
- sykomoriFicus sycomorus
- metsäviikunapuuFicus sycomorus
French platane, sycomore
- platanePlatanus
- sycomoreFicus sycomorus
- figuier sycomoreFicus sycomorus
German Platane, Maulbeerfeige
- PlatanePlatanus
- MaulbeerfeigeFicus sycomorus
- Maulbeer-FeigeFicus sycomorus
- SykomoreFicus sycomorus
- EselsfeigeFicus sycomorus
Greek πλάτανος
- πλάτανος (plátanos)Platanus
Hebrew דולב, שִׁקְמָה
- דולב (dolev)Platanus
- שִׁקְמָה (shiqmá)Ficus sycomorus
Italian platano
- platanoPlatanus
Japanese スズカケノキ, プラタナス
- スズカケノキ (suzukake no ki)Platanus
- プラタナス (puratanasu)Platanus
- エジプトイチジク (Ejiputo-ichijiku)Ficus sycomorus
- イチジクグワ (ichijikuguwa)Ficus sycomorus
Latin platanus
- platanusPlatanus
Māori hikamora, hikamoa
- hikamoraPlatanus
- hikamoaPlatanus
- hikamoraFicus sycomorus
Persian چنار
- چنار (čenâr)Platanus
Polish platan
- platanPlatanus
Portuguese plátano, sicómoro
- plátanoPlatanus
- sicómoroFicus sycomorus
- sicômoroFicus sycomorus
Romanian platan, sicomor
- platanPlatanus
- sicomorFicus sycomorus
Russian плата́н, чинар
- плата́н (platán)Platanus
- чинар (činar)Platanus
Scottish Gaelic sicamor, siocamor
- sicamorFicus sycomorus
- siocamorFicus sycomorus
Spanish plátano, sicomoro
- plátanoPlatanus
- sicomoroFicus sycomorus
- sicómoroFicus sycomorus
Swahili mwela, mkuyu
- mwelaPlatanus
- mkuyuFicus sycomorus
Tagalog sikomoro, sikomoro
- sikomoroPlatanus
- sikomoroFicus sycomorus
Turkish çınar, firavun inciri
- çınarPlatanus
- firavun inciriFicus sycomorus
Ukrainian платан
- платан (platan)Platanus
Welsh sycamorwydden
- sycamorwyddenFicus sycomorus
Rhymes & wordplay
Sounds the same
Cite this entry
sycamore. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sycamore
“sycamore.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sycamore. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “sycamore,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sycamore.
Source: sycamore on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.