timber

C1 Topic:Architecture & Buildings

US /ˈtɪmbɚ/ UK /ˈtɪmbə/ See IPA manual

Freq #11950

Meanings

1

noun
Wood prepared for building or making things.

The cabin was built from local timber.
2

noun
A heavy wooden beam used to support a structure.

The old ship's timbers had begun to rot.
3

intj
A shout warning that a tree being cut down is about to fall.

The logger yelled "Timber!" as the great oak began to fall.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · wood prepared for building... forest timberland

2 noun · a heavy wooden beam used to... beam rafter

Word family

Forms timberedtimberingtimbers

Derived forms belly-timberhalf-timberhalf-timberedtimber-cladtimber-toetimbercladtimberedtimberlandtimberlinetimberyard

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

unseasoned timber
Wood intended for construction or other use that has not yet been sufficiently dried.

Adjective + noun

Proverbs (1)

See all

Knowledge and timber shouldn't be much used until they are seasoned

Simplified etymology

Timber is an Old English word of Germanic origin that once meant both a building and its building material. It is related to German Zimmer, “room,” and ultimately comes from an Indo-European root meaning “to build.”

Etymology

From Middle English tymber, from Old English timber, from Proto-West Germanic *timr, from Proto-Germanic *timrą, from Proto-Indo-European *dem- (“build, house”) (see Proto-Indo-European *dṓm). Cognates include Dutch timmer, Old High German zimbar (German Zimmer), Norwegian tømmer, Old Norse timbr, Gothic 𐍄𐌹𐌼𐍂𐌾𐌰𐌽 (timrjan, “to build”), Latin domus and Ancient Greek δόμος (dómos).

*dem- Proto-Indo-European tymber Middle English timber Old English *timr Proto-West Germanic *timrą Proto-Germanic

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Architecture & Buildings Word Formation & Derivatives General Vocabulary

External links

# timber

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C1
**Part of speech:** noun, intj
**IPA (US):** /ˈtɪmbɚ/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈtɪmbə/
**Frequency rank:** 11950

## Meanings
1. Wood prepared for building or making things.
2. A heavy wooden beam used to support a structure.
3. A shout warning that a tree being cut down is about to fall.

## Examples
- The cabin was built from local timber.
- The old ship's timbers had begun to rot.
- The logger yelled "Timber!" as the great oak began to fall.

## Derived Forms
- belly-timber
- half-timber
- half-timbered
- timber-clad
- timber-toe
- timberclad
- timbered
- timberland
- timberline
- timberyard

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *dem-
- Root: tymber
- Root: timber
- Root: *timr
- Root: *timrą

## Etymology
From Middle English tymber, from Old English timber, from Proto-West Germanic *timr, from Proto-Germanic *timrą, from Proto-Indo-European *dem- (“build, house”) (see Proto-Indo-European *dṓm). Cognates include Dutch timmer, Old High German zimbar (German Zimmer), Norwegian tømmer, Old Norse timbr, Gothic 𐍄𐌹𐌼𐍂𐌾𐌰𐌽 (timrjan, “to build”), Latin domus and Ancient Greek δόμος (dómos).

## AI Etymology
Timber comes from Middle English tymber, from Old English timber, from Proto-West Germanic *timr, from Proto-Germanic *timrą, from Proto-Indo-European *dem- (“build, house”) (see Proto-Indo-European *dṓm). Cognate material includes include Dutch timmer, Old High German zimbar (German Zimmer), Norwegian tømmer, Old Norse timbr, Gothic 𐍄𐌹𐌼𐍂𐌾𐌰𐌽 (timrjan, “to build”), Latin domus and Ancient Greek δόμος (dómos). The historical chain includes *dem- (Proto-Indo-European), tymber (Middle English), timber (Old English), *timr (Proto-West Germanic), and *timrą (Proto-Germanic). The surrounding word family includes derived forms such as belly-timber, half-timber, half-timbered, and timber-clad. In present use it covers wood prepared for building or making things, a heavy wooden beam used to support a structure, and a shout warning that a tree being cut down is about to fall.

## Topics
- Architecture & Buildings
- Word Formation & Derivatives
- General Vocabulary

markdown