/ biːtʃ; NAmE / noun
1.
[ C , U ] (also ˈbeech tree ) a tall forest tree with smooth grey bark , shiny leaves and small nuts :
forests planted with beech
beech hedges
The great beeches towered up towards the sky.
—see also copper beech
2.
(also ˈbeech·wood / ˈbiːtʃwʊd; NAmE /) [ U ] the wood of the beech tree
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WORD ORIGIN
Old English bēce , of Germanic origin; related to Latin fagus beech, Greek phagos edible oak.