Wiktionary
n. 1 (context non-idiomatic usage English) An imaginary tree from which money can be plucked; ''mentioned as an impossible object — see: money doesn't grow on trees''. 2 (context US English) A miniature tree sculpture decorated with currency, often used as a raffle prize or a gift. 3 (context commercial name English) The Malabar chestnut, (taxlink Pachira aquatica species noshow=1). 4 The http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jade%20plant, (taxlink Crassula ovata species noshow=1). 5 The cocoa tree, ''Theobroma cacao''. 6 (context Chinese mythology English) A kind of holy tree believed to bring money and good fortune. 7 (context Australia English) A cheap tree sculpture, decorated with currency, used as a raffle prize because it would be illegal to offer a cash prize.
Wikipedia
Money tree may refer to:
- Money tree (myth), a Chinese myth
- The conceptual negation of the idiom "money doesn't grow on trees", the origin of which may be the story Pinocchio
- An offering given to the Buddha in temples, particularly in the Thord Gathin festival
Chinese legend has it that the money tree is a kind of holy tree, which can bring money and fortune to the people, and that it is a symbol of affluence, nobility and auspiciousness. It can be traced back to primitive societies when the adoration of a holy tree was prevalent. Whilst Money trees may be derived from the Sun tree myth associated with paradise, the coins link paradise with a material bounty in this world. There also exists a holy tree named Chinese Hibiscus in Chinese mythology. According to the existing historical narratives, the concept of the "money tree" is derived at the latest from the Han Dynasty. Cast-bronze money trees are a conspicuous feature of Han tombs in Sichuan.
Usage examples of "money tree".
At any rate it is a big industry in the West, a money tree for a lot of people including the foremen and the skilled heavy-equipment operators who make up the construction elite -- and a massive source of both hope and frustration to the boomers, drifters, and other free-lance laborers who go high on the hog when they get hired, and live like hobos when they don't.
All this is known as shaking the money tree, and it's all done in the most elegant of surroundings, but going home it feels just like you were down on your knees and eating some AC/DC businessman's cock in one of the stalls at Cinema 41.
It's like standing under a money tree and collecting the cash that keeps drifting down.