timber

timber
\ \ [OE] Timber originally denoted a ‘building’ – the Lindisfarne Gospels of around 950 translated Mark 13:1 (‘See what manner of stones and what buildings are here’) as ‘See what stones and what timber’. It comes from a prehistoric Germanic *timram, whose German descendant zimmerroom’ has remained closer to its semantic roots (but German zimmermann means ‘carpenter’). And this in turn went back to Indo-European *demrom, a derivative of the base *dem-, *dom- ‘build’, from which English also gets dome, domestic, etc. The sense ‘building’ gradually developed into ‘building material’, then ‘wood used for building’, and finally ‘wood’ in general.
\ \ Cf.DOME, DOMESTIC

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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Synonyms:
(for building) / , / (of a ship's frame) / , , (of a tree) / , , / ,


Look at other dictionaries:

  • Timber — Tim ber, n. [AS. timbor, timber, wood, building; akin to OFries. timber, D. timmer a room, G. zimmer, OHG. zimbar timber, a dwelling, room, Icel. timbr timber, Sw. timmer, Dan. t[ o]mmer, Goth. timrjan to build, timrja a builder, L. domus a house …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Timber — (engl.: Bauholz) bezeichnet: Timber (Oregon), Gemeinde in Washington County, Oregon, Vereinigte Staaten Timber (Film), Zeichentrick Kurzfilm mit Donald Duck aus dem Jahr 1941 Timber (Musikstück), Musikstück und video der Gruppe Coldcut aus dem… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • timber — tim‧ber [ˈtɪmbə ǁ ər] noun [uncountable] especially BrE wood used for building or making things, or the trees that produce this wood; = lumber AmE: • The region has huge exports of timber. * * * timber UK US /ˈtɪmbər/ noun [U] UK (US lumber)… …   Financial and business terms

  • timber — (n.) O.E. timber building, structure, later building material, trees suitable for building, and wood in general, from P.Gmc. *temran (Cf. O.Fris. timber wood, building, O.H.G. zimbar timber, wooden dwelling, room, O.N. timbr timber, Ger. Zimmer… …   Etymology dictionary

  • timber — [tim′bər] n. [ME < OE, akin to Ger zimmer, room (< OHG zimbar, wooden structure) < IE base * dem , * dema , to join together, build > L domus, house] 1. a) a building b) building material 2. wood suitable for building houses, ships,… …   English World dictionary

  • Timber — Tim ber, n. [Probably the same word as timber sort of wood; cf. Sw. timber, LG. timmer, MHG. zimber, G. zimmer, F. timbre, LL. timbrium. Cf. {Timmer}.] (Com.) A certain quantity of fur skins, as of martens, ermines, sables, etc., packed between… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Timber — Tim ber, v. t. To surmount as a timber does. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Timber — Tim ber, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Timbered}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Timbering}.] To furnish with timber; chiefly used in the past participle. [1913 Webster] His bark is stoutly timbered. Shak. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • timber — ► NOUN 1) wood prepared for use in building and carpentry. 2) informal, chiefly US suitable quality or character: she is hailed as presidential timber. ► EXCLAMATION ▪ used to warn that a tree is about to fall after being cut. DERIVATIVES… …   English terms dictionary

  • Timber — Tim ber, n. [F. timbre. See {Timbre}.] (Her.) The crest on a coat of arms. [Written also {timbre}.] [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Timber — Tim ber, v. i. 1. To light on a tree. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] 2. (Falconry) To make a nest. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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