yew

Pluralyews

1. 1
   nouncountable

   An evergreen coniferous tree or shrub of the genus Taxus, especially the European yew (Taxus baccata), with flat dark-green needle-like leaves and seeds enclosed in fleshy red arils.

   An old yew shades the churchyard, its dark needles thick even in winter.

   They planted a yew hedge along the edge of the garden.

2. 2
   woodnoununcountable

   The timber obtained from trees of the genus Taxus.

   Medieval craftsmen prized yew for longbows because it bends without snapping.

   The dark heartwood of yew polishes to a deep, warm glow.

   Note

   Timber valuable enough to be rationed: Francis Grose, writing in 1786, notes that bowyers were directed to make four bows of witch-hazel, ash or elm for every one of yew, to keep the wood from being used up. As a material it takes no plural (a bow of yew, carved from yew), and it is the material behind the archer's bow and the adjective in phrases like a yew longbow. Source

   Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 4 facts

   • Grose's account was published in 1786, as confirmed by the original title-page date. archive.org
   • Grose reports the four-to-one requirement and explains that it conserved yew. en.wiktionary.org
   • The bow sense denotes a bow made of yew wood. en.wiktionary.org
   • The adjective denotes something made of yew wood. en.wiktionary.org
3. 3
   you (accent)pronounpronunciation spelling

   Eye dialect spelling of you: the same pronoun, respelled to suggest a speaker's accent or drawl.

   Now yew listen here, because I am only going to say this once.

   Where do yew think you're going this late?

   Note

   This word has nothing to do with the tree. It is a respelling of you that changes nothing in the sound and everything in the voice. Writers use it to mark a speaker's accent or manner, as T.L. Stanley does in the Los Angeles Times (2012) for a TV detective's syrupy "thank yew." Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

   • The pronoun is a respelling of you, classified separately from the tree word. en.wiktionary.org
   • Stanley's article appeared in 2012. latimes.com
   • The quoted phrase represents Brenda Leigh Johnson's speech, rather than Stanley's own utterance. en.wiktionary.org
4. 4
   made of woodadjective

   Made of or fashioned from yew wood.

   The chapel's yew screen had darkened to a deep reddish brown.

   Antique yew furniture commands high prices at auction.

5. 5
   similar treenouncountable

   Any of various other conifers that resemble the trees and shrubs of the genus Taxus without belonging to it.

   The nursery sells an Asian yew from the genus Cephalotaxus that handles summer heat well.

   The yews lining the drive are podocarps from Japan, not members of the genus Taxus.

   Note

   The name stretches past the true yews of the genus Taxus to conifers in two other families, the Podocarpaceae and the Cephalotaxaceae. Here yew follows looks rather than lineage, so a plant called a yew may belong to a different family from Taxus baccata altogether. When precision matters, add the family or botanical name. Yew on its own promises only a resemblance. Source

   Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

   • True yews belong to the genus Taxus. en.wikipedia.org
   • Other conifers resembling Taxus and called yews occur in Podocarpaceae and Cephalotaxaceae. en.wiktionary.org
   • Taxus baccata belongs to Taxaceae, so plants called yews in the other named families belong to a different family. en.wikipedia.org

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