What does "mahogany" mean?
The valuable wood of any of various tropical American evergreen trees, of the genus Swietenia, mostly used to make furniture.
Mahogany
/məˈhɒɡəni/ adj, name, noun, slang
adj, name, noun, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The valuable wood of any of various tropical American evergreen trees, of the genus Swietenia, mostly used to make furniture.
- Grammar: mahogany is listed as adj, name, noun, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: reddish brown, alabaster, auburn, auburn.
- Useful contrasts: light, light color, pale.
- Usage evidence: I bought the mahogany table because it was the most elegant.
How to use "mahogany"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "mahogany" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "mahogany" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "mahogany" as the right word for your sentence.
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Compare nearby meanings
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- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
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Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "mahogany" is acting as adj, name, noun, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "reddish brown" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
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Final meaning check
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Definitions
Noun
- 1 The valuable wood of any of various tropical American evergreen trees, of the genus Swietenia, mostly used to make furniture. uncountable
"A very neat old woman, still in her good outdoor coat and best beehive hat, was sitting at a polished mahogany table on whose surface there were several scored scratches so deep that a triangular piece of the veneer had come cleanly away[…]."
- 2 a shade of brown with a tinge of red wordnet
- 3 Any of the trees from which such wood comes. countable
- 4 any of various tropical timber trees of the family Meliaceae especially the genus Swietinia valued for their hard yellowish- to reddish-brown wood that is readily worked and takes a high polish wordnet
- 5 (by extension) Any of various kinds of trees, the timber of which resembles that of trees the genus Swietenia. countable
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 wood of any of various mahogany trees; much used for cabinetwork and furniture wordnet
- 7 A Cornish drink made from gin and treacle. countable, regional, uncountable
"William Murdoch […] produced a bottle of port; but I chose mahogany (two parts gin and one part treacle, which Lord Eliot made us at Sir Joshua Reynolds's as a Cornish liquor, but it seems they make it also with brandy, and often add porter to it)."
- 8 A reddish-brown color, like that of mahogany wood. countable, uncountable
"Better she, my dear, than a black Mrs. Sedley, and a dozen of mahogany grandchildren."
- 9 A table made from mahogany wood; a dining table. colloquial, countable, obsolete, uncountable
"Poets eat and drink without stint — and seldom at their own cost — for what man of mark or likelihood in the moneyed world is there, who is not eager to get their legs under his mahogany?"
Adjective
- 1 Made of mahogany.
- 2 Having the colour of mahogany; dark reddish-brown.
Proper Noun
- 1 A barangay of Butuan, Agusan del Norte, Philippines.
Example
"I bought the mahogany table because it was the most elegant."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "mahogany"?
Common synonyms include: reddish brown, alabaster, auburn, auburn, bay, bayard.
How do you use "mahogany" in a sentence?
I bought the mahogany table because it was the most elegant.
How do you pronounce "mahogany"?
Pronounced /məˈhɒɡəni/.
Etymology
A word of unknown origin, concocted in either English or Middle Dutch from one or more exotic phytonyms and common European words. alternative etymologies Alternatively from Portuguese mogano, mógono, obsolete forms of mogno, itself of unknown origin (often suggested to be from the English word instead of the reverse), perhaps from an extinct indigenous language, such as a Mayan language originally spoken in Honduras or a South American language, but no known cognates survive. Another theory attempts to link Yoruba moganwo (“trees”, literally “tall ones”), but this has been criticized.