Alternative forms

Etymology

From Latin arbor (“tree”) +‎ vitae (“of life”), literally “tree of life”, probably referring to the evergreen leaves. The anatomical sense from the branched, tree-like appearance of the tissue.

Pronunciation

(General American)
- IPA^(key): /ˌɑɹbɚˈvaɪti/; [ˌɑɹbɚˈvaɪɾi], (Canadian raising) [ˌɑɹbɚˈvəɪɾi]
- IPA^(key): /ˌɑɹbɚˈvaɪtə/
Audio (Southern England): (file)

Noun

arborvitae (plural arborvitaes)

Any of several North American or Asian conifers, of the genera Thuja and Thujopsis or the species Platycladus orientalis, grown for timber or ornament.
Synonym: tree of life

Hyponym: thuja
- 1862, Henry Morford, Shoulder-Straps […] ‎, Philadelphia: T.B. Peterson & Bros.:
  She was at that moment just outside the door, and from the position of the Colonel, framed between the pillars at the other end of the piazza and against the dark green foliage of an arborvitae standing beyond.
(anatomy) The white nerve tissue of the cerebellum that has a branching structure.

Translations

conifer — see also thuja

white nerve tissue of the cerebellum

Portuguese: árvore da vida f

Further reading

English