ETYM Old Eng. ew, AS. eów, îw, eoh; akin to Dutch ijf, Old High Germ. îwa, îha, German eibe, Icel. yr; cf. Irish iubhar, Gael. iubhar, iughar, W. yw, ywen, Lith. jëva the black alder tree.
Any evergreen coniferous tree of the genus Taxus of the family Taxaceae, native to the northern hemisphere. The leaves and bright red berrylike seeds are poisonous; the wood is hard and close-grained.
The western or Pacific yew T. brevifolia is native to North America. English yew T. baccata is widely cultivated as an ornamental. The wood was formerly used to make longbows.
The anticancer drug taxol is synthesized from the bark of the Pacific yew.
(Homonym: ewe, you).
Any of numerous evergreen trees or shrubs having red cup-shaped berries and flattened needlelike leaves.
Wood of a yew; especially the durable fine-grained light brown or red wood of the English yew valued for cabinetwork and archery bows.