High-performance sustainable materials reconstructed from natural plants offer an important route to address ecological and resource challenges. Here, we report “meta-wood,” a bulk material constructed solely from plant fibers through mechanical entanglement and enhanced interfacial bonding. The material is formed by swelling-induced torsion of plant fibers, which generates a permanent three-dimensional interlocked network, followed by capillary-force-driven drying that densifies the network and promotes interfacial fusion through pervasive hydrogen bonding. The resulting meta-wood is a fully integrated monolith with a density of 1.48 g cm−3, approaching that of solid cellulose. Unlike adhesive-bonded composites and anisotropic natural wood, meta-wood possesses an isotropic microstructure composed of randomly interlocked fibers. This architecture gives rise to a tensile strength of 87.9 MPa, a Shore D hardness of 75.4, and distinctive optical properties, including about 60% transmittance and over 90% haze at submillimeter thickness. Meta-wood also exhibits good resistance to water, heat, and flame, while retaining the intrinsic biodegradability of cellulose. Life-cycle assessment indicates low carbon emissions and favorable cost efficiency compared with common petroleum-based plastics. This work provides a universal microstructural modulation strategy for short plant fibers and opens a new route toward high-performance, fully bio-based sustainable materials.
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