Adam's apple
- noun
- /ˈædəmz ˈæpəl/
- Indian
:
manzana de Adán
- She planted an Adam's apple shrub to add an exotic touch to her backyard.
Examples
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The garden featured a rare Adam's apple among the other tropical plants.
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Botanists often study the fragrant blooms of the Adam's apple for their unique structure.
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Adam's apple blooms!
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Adam's apples thrive!
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In her garden, she admired the beautiful flowers of the Adam's apple shrub that bloomed at night.
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He chose an Adam's apple plant for its glossy leaves and fragrant blossoms in his landscaping design.
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The Adam's apple shrub attracted many butterflies with its lovely, aromatic flowers.
Synonyms
A tropical shrub with glossy leaves and white flowers that smell sweet and open at night
A tropical shrub with shiny leaves and sweet-smelling night flowers with wavy petals
A tropical shrub with shiny leaves and fragrant flowers that open at night
A tropical shrub with glossy leaves and fragrant white flowers that open at night
A tropical shrub with shiny leaves and sweet-smelling flowers that open at night
A tropical shrub with shiny leaves and scented night flowers from northern India to Thailand
A tropical shrub with shiny leaves and white flowers that smell sweet
A tropical shrub with glossy leaves and fragrant white, crinkled flowers
Surface Forms
Morphology
Adam's + apple
The phrase is a lexicalized proper-name compound whose meaning (here a specific shrub) cannot be predicted from the possessive proper name 'Adam's' plus the noun 'apple'. A B1 learner who knows the constituents would most likely interpret it literally (an apple belonging to Adam) and would not infer the botanical sense; the referent is culturally/historically specific and therefore not compositionally transparent.
Etymology
Adam's apple as a shrub name may come from the plant's round, apple-like fruits or buds that look a little like a small apple. One popular idea is that people used this clear image and so the plant came to be called 'Adam's apple' today.
