Any woody plant that has several stems, none of which is dominant, and is usually less than 10 ft (3 m) tall.
When much-branched and dense, it may be called a bush. Intermediate between shrubs and trees are arborescences, or treelike shrubs (10–20 ft, or 3–6 m, tall). Tree s are generally defined as woody plants more than 20 ft (6 m) tall, having a dominant stem, or trunk, and a definite crown shape. These distinctions are not reliable, however; for example, under especially favourable environmental conditions, some shrubs may grow to the size of an arborescence or even a small tree.