The Collaborative International Dictionary
Coral \Cor"al\, n. [Of. coral, F, corail, L. corallum, coralium, fr. Gr. kora`llion.]
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(Zo["o]l.) The hard parts or skeleton of various Anthozoa, and of a few Hydrozoa. Similar structures are also formed by some Bryozoa.
Note: The large stony corals forming coral reefs belong to various genera of Madreporaria, and to the hydroid genus, Millepora. The red coral, used in jewelry, is the stony axis of the stem of a gorgonian ( Corallium rubrum) found chiefly in the Mediterranean. The fan corals, plume corals, and sea feathers are species of Gorgoniacea, in which the axis is horny. Organ-pipe coral is formed by the genus Tubipora, an Alcyonarian, and black coral is in part the axis of species of the genus Antipathes. See Anthozoa, Madrepora.
The ovaries of a cooked lobster; -- so called from their color.
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A piece of coral, usually fitted with small bells and other appurtenances, used by children as a plaything. Brain coral, or Brain stone coral. See under Brain. Chain coral. See under Chain. Coral animal (Zo["o]l.), one of the polyps by which corals are formed. They are often very erroneously called coral insects. Coral fish. See in the Vocabulary. Coral reefs (Phys. Geog.), reefs, often of great extent, made up chiefly of fragments of corals, coral sands, and the solid limestone resulting from their consolidation. They are classed as fringing reefs, when they border the land; barrier reefs, when separated from the shore by a broad belt of water; atolls, when they constitute separate islands, usually inclosing a lagoon. See Atoll. Coral root (Bot.), a genus ( Corallorhiza) of orchideous plants, of a yellowish or brownish red color, parasitic on roots of other plants, and having curious jointed or knotted roots not unlike some kinds of coral. See Illust. under Coralloid. Coral snake. (Zo)
A small, venomous, Brazilian snake (Elaps corallinus), coral-red, with black bands.
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A small, harmless, South American snake ( Tortrix scytale).
Coral tree (Bot.), a tropical, leguminous plant, of several species, with showy, scarlet blossoms and coral-red seeds. The best known is Erythrina Corallodendron.
Coral wood, a hard, red cabinet wood.
--McElrath.
Wiktionary
n. (context botany English) Any of the trees of the genus ''Erythrina''
WordNet
n. any of various shrubs or shrubby trees of the genus Erythrina having trifoliate leaves and racemes of scarlet to coral red flowers and black seeds; cultivated as an ornamental [syn: erythrina]
Usage examples of "coral tree".
He let himself through an unlocked wooden gate onto a side patio brightened only by moonlight filtered through the leafy branches of an enormous sheltering coral tree.
His vertical coffin was a truly awesome coral tree, with wood of resilient softness and durability.
It was a secluded spot in the shade of a coral tree, next to a wall that was covered with bougainvillea.
It was a secluded spot in the shade of a coral tree, next to a wall that was covered with bou-gainvillea.
He parked beneath the spreading limbs of a coral tree large enough to serve as a guest house for the Swiss Family Robinson, protected here from the glow of nearby streetlamps.
Right outside my window was a large coral tree, with thick leaves and a green trunk.
Still letting the imaginary conversation play out in his head, he cautiously steered the Corvette around an immense branch from a coral tree that had blown down in the storm and blocked half the street.
After tying the twisted neck of the trash bag to his belt, he climbed into a coral tree, crossed the fence on a limb, and dropped into an alley.