1. Any of several Old World evergreen coniferous trees of the genus Cedrus, having stiff needles on short shoots and large erect seed cones with broad deciduous scales.
2. Any of several other evergreen coniferous trees or shrubs, such as the Alaska cedar, incense cedar, or red cedar.
3. The durable aromatic wood of any of these plants, especially that of the red cedar, often used to make chests.

[Middle English cedre, from Old French, from Latin cedrus, from Greek kedros.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.