Mahogany
[mə'hɒgənɪ] or [mə'hɑgəni]
Definition
(noun.) any of various tropical timber trees of the family Meliaceae especially the genus Swietinia valued for their hard yellowish- to reddish-brown wood that is readily worked and takes a high polish.
(noun.) wood of any of various mahogany trees; much used for cabinetwork and furniture.
Inputed by Delia--From WordNet
Definition
(n.) A large tree of the genus Swietenia (S. Mahogoni), found in tropical America.
(n.) The wood of the Swietenia Mahogoni. It is of a reddish brown color, beautifully veined, very hard, and susceptible of a fine polish. It is used in the manufacture of furniture.
(n.) A table made of mahogany wood.
Inputed by Bennett
Definition
n. a tree of tropical America: its wood which is of great value for making furniture.—n. Mahog′any-tree same as mahogany: (hum.) the dinner-table.
Editor: Megan
Examples
- A spare parlour and bedroom I refurnished entirely, with old mahogany and crimson upholstery: I laid canvas on the passage, and carpets on the stairs. Charlotte Bronte. Jane Eyre.
- Carriages and opera-boxes, thought he; fancy being seen in them by the side of such a mahogany charmer as that! William Makepeace Thackeray. Vanity Fair.
- He pointed, as he spoke, to several portfolios placed near the window, on mahogany stands. Wilkie Collins. The Woman in White.
- Beside her was a mahogany stand bearing a cast bronze lamp with an engraved globe, over which a green paper shade had been balanced. Edith Wharton. The Age of Innocence.
- In the large shining mahogany escritoire Mr. Osborne had a drawer especially devoted to his son's affairs and papers. William Makepeace Thackeray. Vanity Fair.
- Brunel, in 1805-1808, devised a set of circular saws run by a steam engine, which cut sheets of rosewood and mahogany, one-fourteenth of an inch thick, with great speed and accuracy. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- Yorkshire people in those days took their tea round the table, sitting well into it, with their knees duly introduced under the mahogany. Charlotte Bronte. Shirley.
- Going round to the terrace, I found three mahogany-coloured Indians, in white linen frocks and trousers, looking up at the house. Wilkie Collins. The Moonstone.
- That mahogany image is jealous, Maurice, he said, throwing himself back in his chair. Fergus Hume. The Island of Fantasy.
- Better she, my dear, than a black Mrs. Sedley, and a dozen of mahogany grandchildren. William Makepeace Thackeray. Vanity Fair.
- Old Mr. Letterblair, the accredited legal adviser of three generations of New York gentility, throned behind his mahogany desk in evident perplexity. Edith Wharton. The Age of Innocence.
- In making a high-grade cue, a choice piece of imported wood, such as ebony, mahogany, or rosewood, is cut into blocks about three inches square and twenty inches long. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- Secretaire, you see, and abstruse set of solid mahogany pigeon-holes, one for every letter of the alphabet. Charles Dickens. Our Mutual Friend.
- The remainder of the woodwork is finished in its natural color except the gutters, which are stained mahogany and shellaced. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- I sat on the high stool before the pleasant mahogany, the brass and the mirrors and did not think at all. Ernest Hemingway. A Farewell To Arms.
Edited by Henry