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Glite Dictionary
Calochortus amoenus

Calochortus amoenus

9.9
A small lily with deep pink or purple round flowers that grows on Sierra Nevada slopes in California
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : Calochortus amoenus
  • The meadows were dotted with the delicate Calochortus amoenus in full bloom.

Examples

  • Hikers often stop to admire the deep rose hues of Calochortus amoenus along the Sierra trails.

  • Researchers are studying the habitat preferences of Calochortus amoenus in the San Joaquin Valley.

  • The Calochortus amoenus blooms beautifully in the spring.

  • Look at that Calochortus amoenus blooming over there!

  • Hikers often stop to admire the deep rose hues of Calochortus amoenus along the Sierra trails.

  • The meadows were dotted with the delicate Calochortus amoenus in full bloom.

  • Researchers are studying the habitat preferences of Calochortus amoenus in the San Joaquin Valley.

Synonyms

rose globe lily
vsCalochortus amoenus
  • US
9.9

A wild flower with deep pink or purple egg-shaped blooms on bending stems

is the same plant but lacks the stem detail and valley location mention

Surface Forms

Calochortus amoenus singular
Calochortus amoeni plural

Morphology

Calochortus + amoenus

This is a Latin binomial (a taxonomic species name) and functions as a proper noun rather than a compositional English phrase; the species epithet 'amoenus' is not an English lexical item here and gives no transparent, predictable meaning to a B1 learner. Even if a learner knows 'Calochortus' as a genus, they would not be able to derive the specific species meaning from the constituents, so the expression is idiomatic/opaque in English usage.

Etymology

Calochortus amoenus comes from old Greek and Latin words: Calo- and -chortus together mean 'beautiful' and 'grass', and amoenus means 'pleasant' or 'delightful'. So the name suggests a pretty, pleasant flower, which fits the rose-pink globe lily that grows on the Sierra Nevada slopes.