Meaning & use
Christmas tree
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A decorated evergreen tree put up in homes and public places at Christmas.
Grammar: Countable: say a Christmas tree, two Christmas trees.
Patterns
- put up a Christmas tree
- decorate a Christmas tree
- a Christmas tree with lights
We put up the Christmas tree on the first weekend of December.
The children hung candy canes and stars on the Christmas tree.
A huge Christmas tree stands in the middle of the town square every year.
nouncountabletechnical
A small evergreen tree or plant of the fir or spruce kind, often grown for use at Christmas.
Grammar: Countable; here it means the living tree itself, not the decorated one indoors.
Patterns
- grow Christmas trees
- a Christmas tree farm
The farm sells Christmas trees that customers cut down themselves.
Spruce and fir are the most common Christmas trees in this region.
nouncountable
A pattern of colored lights or a shape that looks like a decorated tree, used as a decoration.
Grammar: Countable; usually refers to a light display or ornament shaped like a tree.
Patterns
- a Christmas tree of lights
- hang a Christmas tree on the door
They strung a Christmas tree of white lights across the window.
She hung a tiny wooden Christmas tree on the front door.
Word forms
| plural | Christmas trees |
|---|
Common combinations
- put up a Christmas tree
- We always put up a Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving.
- decorate a Christmas tree
- The whole family helped decorate the Christmas tree.
- Christmas tree lights
- One set of Christmas tree lights stopped working.
- Christmas tree farm
- They bought a fir from a local Christmas tree farm.
- artificial Christmas tree
- An artificial Christmas tree is easier to store than a real one.
Synonyms and how they differ
Word family
- Christmas noun
- The Christian festival on December 25 that the tree is associated with.
- Christmassy adjective
- Informal: feeling or looking like Christmas.
Commonly confused: Christmas tree or Xmas tree?
Christmas tree vs Xmas tree
'Xmas' is a common written short form of Christmas, so 'Xmas tree' means the same thing, but it is less formal.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'Christmas tree' correctly?
Choose one answer.
A Christmas tree is a decorated evergreen used at Christmas, so option A fits. Option B mixes it with the wrong holiday, C uses the noun as a verb, and D confuses a tree with food.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “Christmas tree”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.