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Definition of "heartwood" [heart•wood]

  • The older, nonliving central wood of a tree or woody plant, usually darker and harder than the younger sapwood. Also called duramen. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "heartwood" in a sentence
  • "Fortunately, he accepted me as his Ph.D. student and I began to explore the neoflavonoids found in a piece of heartwood from a Brazilian tree."
  • "Libby also checked his method by determining the age of heartwood from the trunks of redwood trees (Sequoia sempervirens), and of Douglas firs"
  • "Wood heavy, hard, strong, mostly light colored except in old heartwood, which is reddish."