coppice

Plural: coppices

Noun

a dense growth of bushes
A grove of small growth; a thicket of brushwood; a wood cut at certain times for fuel or other purposes, typically managed to promote growth and ensure a reliable supply of timber. See copse.

Verb

Verb Forms: coppiced, coppicing, coppices

To cut back trees or shrubs to promote regrowth from the base.
To manage (a wooded area) sustainably, as a coppice, by periodically cutting back woody plants to promote new growth.
To sprout from the stump.

Examples

Few conifer species can coppice.
He chose to COPPICE his game plan, trimming weak strategies for new growth.
Her plan to coppice the woods should keep her self-sufficient in fuel indefinitely.

Origin / Etymology

From Middle English copies, from Old French copeiz (“a cut-over forest”), from presumed Vulgar Latin *colpaticium (“having the quality of being cut”), from *colpāre (“to cut, strike”), from *colpus (“a blow”), from Latin colaphus (“a cuff, box on the ear”), from Ancient Greek κόλαφος (kólaphos, “a blow, slap”).

Synonyms

brush, brushwood, copse, thicket

Scrabble Score: 15

coppice: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
coppice: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
coppice: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 19

coppice: valid Words With Friends Word