Word of the Day: Timber

timber tim-ber /  tĭm-bər   noun 1. wood that can be used as a building material; lumber; hardwood There is a frightful interval between the seed and the timber. Samuel Johnson, 1709 – 1784   2. trees or an area of growing trees An acorn costs nothing, but it may spread into a prodigious timber. William Makepeace Thackeray, 1811 – 1863   3. a prepared piece of wood, particularly used in the formation of a structure; a wooden beam If the main timbers in the house are not straight, the smaller timber will be unsafe; and if the smaller timbers are not straight, the house will fall. Chinese Proverb   4. in shipbuilding, a curved rib forming the frame of a wooden ship Stripped of their lighter timbers, both vessels have been used for the construction of huts, erected on the nearest land. From “The Frozen Deep” by Wilkie Collins, 1824 – 1889   5. a person considered to be exceptionally qualified for a specified job or activity Writing the same kind of ads he did four years ago undercuts his attempts to convince people he has presidential timber. Bill Dal Col, ? –   verb 1.  to provide or support with lumber Although they were timbering the roof as the 12-metre-wide pillars were being removed, the roof weight was so intense that props, timbers, and the pillar remains could not support the roof. “No. 1 Mine Roof Fall, Inverness, 1924”, ‘Museum of Industry’, museumofindustry.novascotia.ca/nova-scotia-industry/nova-scotia-coal-mining-tragedies/inverness-county-coal-mines/no-1-mine-roof, accessed January 2, 2023   2. to cut down trees There is much work to do to protect forests from over-timbering and oceans and lakes from over-fishing. Philip Kotler, 1931 –   interjection 1. a warning called out by a lumberjack to alert others that a tree is about to fall down Timber!