Meaning

noun the trees and other plants in a large densely wooded area

noun land that is covered with trees and shrubs

verb establish a forest on previously unforested land

originInherited from Middle English forest, from Old French forest, from Early Medieval Latin forestis. The Latin could be: * from foris (“outside”), as in forestis (silva) "(wood) outside," * or from Frankish or Proto-West Germanic *furhisti (“forest, fir-grove, wooded land”), equivalent to fir + hurst. In which case, related to Old English fyrhþe (“forested land”), Old High German forst, forsti…

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0