Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
Aquilegia caerulea

Aquilegia caerulea

9.9
A mountain wildflower with blue and white flowers with long spurs that grows in the Rocky Mountains
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : Aquilegia caerulea
  • Many hikers in Colorado admire the delicate beauty of Aquilegia caerulea each spring.

Examples

  • The garden featured a vibrant patch of Aquilegia caerulea blooming beside the path.

  • Botanists often study Aquilegia caerulea for its unique flower structure and coloration.

  • The Aquilegia caerulea blooms beautifully in the spring.

  • Have you seen the Aquilegia caerulea in the garden?

  • Many hikers in Colorado admire the delicate beauty of Aquilegia caerulea each spring.

  • The garden featured a vibrant patch of Aquilegia caerulea blooming beside the path.

  • Botanists often study Aquilegia caerulea for its unique flower structure and coloration.

Synonyms

blue columbine
vsAquilegia caerulea
  • US
7.7

A plant with long blue flowers that grows in the Rocky Mountains

has both blue and white petals rather than just blue ones

Surface Forms

Aquilegia caerulea singular
Aquilegia caeruleas plural

Morphology

Aquilegia + caerulea

The binomial is compositional: Aquilegia denotes the columbine genus and caerulea is a Latin adjective meaning 'blue', so the phrase literally denotes the blue-flowered Aquilegia. Assuming a learner knows both constituent meanings, the species epithet transparently describes the plant's color and the overall meaning is directly derivable from the parts, following common taxonomic naming conventions.

Etymology

Aquilegia caerulea is named for how it looks: Aquilegia comes from Latin aquila meaning 'eagle' because the flower's long spurs look like an eagle's claw, and caerulea means 'blue' for its color. That's why the name describes this plant as a blue columbine with long, claw-like spurs.