From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishsaplingsap‧ling /ˈsæplɪŋ/ noun [countable] HBPTAFa young tree
Examples from the Corpus
sapling• So he stopped by the road and pulled up a sapling to use for a substitute.• The only thing that gave it away was a sapling curiously moving on a day when there was no wind.• I was surprised, therefore, to find three sphinx caterpillars still feeding on the ash sapling next to the cabin.• At a twist in the river lay the spinney, a clump of birch saplings sprouting through a thicket of bramble.• There are also maple, spruce, pine and balsam fir saplings, and patches of wild raspberries and blueberries.• A few leaves still clung optimistically to the lime saplings planted either side of the path leading to the reception.• It hadn't been and wasn't far away, just out of sight behind a group of saplings.• Most of the saplings, yes.Origin sapling (1400-1500) → SAP1 