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Balmoral Castle

Balmoral Castle

6.2
A large castle in northeast Scotland where the British king or queen lives privately
  • proper noun
translation icon : Castillo de Balmoral
  • - I watched Diana blossom from a shy young girl, 18 years old at Balmoral Castle.

Examples

  • So I'm standing in the front hallway of Balmoral Castle, on the black and white tiles.

  • Balmoral Castle has been an official summer residence of the British monarch since the 19th century.

  • Every year, the British royal family hosts events at Balmoral Castle, celebrating its rich history.

  • Located in the Scottish Highlands, Balmoral Castle is surrounded by beautiful landscapes and woodland.

Surface Forms

Morphology

Balmoral + castle

The word 'castle' makes the core meaning (that this is a castle) immediately clear to a learner who knows the constituents, so the referential type is compositional. However, the proper name 'Balmoral' carries no predictable lexical information about location or status, so the specific facts (northeastern Scotland; private royal residence) cannot be derived from the parts alone. This partial predictability yields a semi-transparent judgement.

Etymology

Balmoral Castle became famous when Queen Victoria bought the place and made it her private family home in the Scottish Highlands. Picture the royal family spending their summers there — that's why Balmoral Castle now means the British king or queen's private 'home' in Scotland.