Need some clarifications on gymnosperm, conifers, angiosperm, deciduous?

Question

I'm wondering if gymnosperm is synonymous with conifers

and...

angiosperm is synonymous with deciduous.

If not, can you explain the difference?

Answer 1

It's not quite as simple as the relationships you list.

Gymnosperms have their ovule exposed at the edge of a blade or scale, and they are usually produced in a cone-like structure, so while this would include conifers, it also includes cycads and ginkos. And some conifers, such as baldcypress, redwood, and larch have deciduous needles! Gymnosperms also produce separate male and female cones (sometimes on separate trees as in ginkos which are either male or female), and the male cones are usually much smaller, sometimes not even noticed.

Angiosperms have their seeds enclosed by a carpel (fruit). "Fruit" is used fairly loosely here , since this could be a fruit like an apple, or nut (acorn, walnut), legume (bean, pea), cucumber, tomato, squash, orange, etc., so this would include deciduous trees and shrubs, but also broad-leaved trees with non-deciduous leaves (rhododendron, laurel, southern magnolias, oaks, etc.), and herbaceous plants (grasses, wildflowers, etc.). The male and female structures may be in the same flower, separate flowers on the same plant, or on different plants. Generally, other than magnolia and tulip trees, these fruits wouldn't be confused with a "cone", and even the exceptions are pretty distinct.

Answer 2

Gymnosperm means "naked seed"--the ovule is not enclosed in a carpel as it is in the angiosperms. While all conifers are gymnosperms, not all gymnosperms are conifers (the group also includes ginko, cycads, and ephedra); also, some conifers are deciduous (larch, dawn redwood).
The angiosperms include all flowering plants, so deciduous trees comprise only a small number of the angiosperms. Many angiosperms and angiosperm trees are evergreen as well (live oaks, bay laurel, grand magnolia).