A tree or shrub that bears cones and typically has needle-like or scale-like leaves. The name literally means 'cone-bearing' tree.
From Latin 'conus' (cone, from Greek 'konos') + 'ferre' (to bear, carry - Latin form of Greek 'pherein'), meaning 'cone-bearing.' The Latin 'ferre' is cognate with Greek 'pherein.' The term was coined in botanical Latin and entered English in the 19th century.
Conifer shows how the root crossed from Greek into Latin - 'ferre' is Latin's version of Greek 'pherein'! Just as phosphorus bears light and semaphore bears signals, conifers bear cones, making them the 'cone-carriers' of the plant world.
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