A manufactured wood product made of thin layers of wood veneer glued together with adjacent layers having their wood grain rotated for strength.
From 'ply' (meaning layer or fold, from Old French 'plier' to bend) + 'wood', first used in early 20th century as this layered construction technique became industrialized.
Plywood's cross-grain construction makes it stronger than solid wood in many applications, embodying the engineering principle that strategic arrangement can triumph over raw material - like how a bundle of sticks is stronger than individual twigs.
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