Euphorbia milii
- noun
- Specialized
:
Euphorbia milii
- With its spiny stems and small flowers, Euphorbia milii is often referred to as the crown of thorns.
Examples
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Many people admire the bright red bracts of Euphorbia milii in tropical gardens.
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The gardener carefully transplanted the Euphorbia milii into a larger pot to give it more space.
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Because of its hardy nature, Euphorbia milii is popular as a decorative indoor plant.
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The Euphorbia milii is often used in gardens for its vibrant colors.
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Have you seen the beautiful Euphorbia milii at the botanical garden?
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The bright red bracts of Euphorbia milii make it a striking addition to any garden.
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Many homeowners choose Euphorbia milii for its resilience and low maintenance needs.
Synonyms
A spiny plant with long stems and bright red flowers
A spiny shrub from Madagascar grown as a houseplant with small flowers and bright red petals
A spiny shrub from Madagascar with long stems and red flower-like parts often grown in gardens
Surface Forms
Morphology
Euphorbia + milii
This is a Latin taxonomic binomial (a species name) rather than a compositional English phrase; such names function as proper nouns and do not convey predictable descriptive meaning. Even if a learner knew 'Euphorbia' as a plant genus, that alone does not yield the specific sense ('crown of thorns' shrub) and 'milii' is not an English lexical item or transparent morpheme. Therefore a B1 learner who knows the constituent strings would not be able to derive the MWE's meaning from them.
Etymology
Euphorbia milii is often called the 'crown of thorns' because its long, woody stems are covered in thorns and its small flowers sit among bright red leaf-like parts, making it look like a thorny crown. That strong picture helps people remember the plant and why it is used as a hardy, decorative shrub.
