hornbeam

Syllables: horn·beamUK/ˈhɔːnbiːm//ˈhoɹnˌbim/

hornbeam noun: a tree of the genus Carpinus, having smooth grey bark and a ridged trunk, the wood being white and very hard, found in temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere.

Noun (1)

hornbeam (plural hornbeams)

(countable) A tree of the genus Carpinus, having smooth grey bark and a ridged trunk, the wood being white and very hard, found in temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere.
- The Horn-beam, in Latine the Carpinus, is planted of Sets; though it may likevviſe be raiſed from the Seeds, […] Thus it vvill advance to a conſiderable Tree.1664, J[ohn] E[velyn], “Of the Horn-Beam”, in Sylva, or A Discourse of Forest-trees and the Propagation of Timber in His Majesties Dominions. […], London: […] Jo[hn] Martyn, and Ja[mes] Allestry...
1. (countable) Especially, the American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), which is common along the banks of streams in the United States.
2. (countable) Especially, the common hornbeam or European hornbeam (Carpinus betulus).
  - Betulus, or the Hornebeame tree grovveth great, & very like vnto the Elme, or vvich Hazell tree, hauing a great body: the vvood or timber vvherof […] in time it vvaxeth ſo hard, that the toughnes and hardnes of it, may be rather compared vnto horne then vnto vvood, and therfore it vvas called...1597, John Gerarde [i.e., John Gerard], “Of the Hornebeame, or Hardbeame Tree”, in The Herball or Generall Historie of Plantes. […], London: […] Edm[und] Bollifant, for Bonham and Iohn Norton, →OCLC...
(uncountable) The wood of these trees or one species of them; (countable) a sample of such wood.

Noun (2)

hornbeam (plural hornbeams)

Synonym of beam (“the principal stem of the antler of a deer, which branches grow out from”).

Synonyms:

beam
(obsolete) A beam or ray of light emanating from the head of a deity like a horn.
- With toole ſharp poincted wee boarde and perced his one light [the single eye of the Cyclops Polyphemus], / That ſtood in his lowring front gloommiſh malleted onlye. / Like Greekiſh tergat gliſtring, or Phœbus his hornebeams.1582, “The Third Booke of Virgil His Æneis”, in Richard Stanyhurst, transl., The First Foure Bookes of Virgils Æneis, […], London: […] Henrie Bynneman […], published 1583, →OCLC, page 59

hornbeam meaning in Persian

hornbeam in Persian

tree of the genus Carpinus: ممرز mamraz, کرزل korzel

Synonyms of hornbeam

Forms of hornbeam

plural	hornbeams

Origin of hornbeam

From Late Middle English hornbeme, hernbem, hernebem (“European hornbeam (Carpinus betulus)”), from horn (“antler or horn of an animal; etc.”) + bem (“tree; piece of metal, wood, etc.”) (referring to a tree with wood as hard as horn): * Horn is from Old English horn (“horn”), from Proto-West Germanic *horn (“horn”), from Proto-Germanic *hurną (“horn”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱerh₂- (“horn; head, top”). * Bem is from Old English bēam (“tree; piece of wood”), from Proto-West Germanic *baum (“tree; piece of wood”), possibly from Proto-Germanic *bagmaz (“tree; piece of wood”); further etymology uncertain, possibly from Proto-Indo-European *bʰh₂ǵʰ-mo-s (“branch”) or *bʰuH- (“to appear; to be; to become; to grow”). By surface analysis, horn + beam (“only in compounds: tree”).

From horn + beam (“principal stem of the antler of a deer; ray of light”).

Words formed from hornbeam

American hophornbeam
American hop hornbeam
eastern hop hornbeam
European hophornbeam
European hop hornbeam
hophornbeam
hop hornbeam

Phrases with hornbeam

Questions about hornbeam

What does hornbeam mean?: Hornbeam means a tree of the genus Carpinus, having smooth grey bark and a ridged trunk, the wood being white and very hard, found in temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere.
What is hornbeam in Persian?: Hornbeam in Persian is ممرز (mamraz), کرزل (korzel). See Hornbeam meaning in Persian.
What part of speech is hornbeam?: Hornbeam is a noun.
How do you pronounce hornbeam?: Hornbeam is pronounced /ˈhɔːnbiːm/ (UK).
What is the plural of hornbeam?: The plural of hornbeam is hornbeams.

Words near hornbeam in the dictionary

Adapted from Wiktionary: hornbeam (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Naomi Persephone Amethyst (NaomiAmethyst)-hornbeam.wav.

Cite this entry: “hornbeam.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/hornbeam. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.