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Glite Dictionary
Lespedeza cuneata

Lespedeza cuneata

9.8
A plant that lives for many years and is grown for animal feed and hay
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : lespedeza cuneata
  • Some regions use Lespedeza cuneata as an important hay crop for livestock.

Examples

  • The rapid growth of Lespedeza cuneata makes it valuable for preventing soil erosion.

  • Farmers often plant Lespedeza cuneata to restore fertility to overworked soil.

  • Farmers often plant Lespedeza cuneata for its resilience.

  • The Lespedeza cuneata fields were lush this summer.

  • Farmers often plant Lespedeza cuneata to restore fertility to overworked soil.

  • Some regions use Lespedeza cuneata as an important hay crop for livestock.

  • The rapid growth of Lespedeza cuneata makes it valuable for preventing soil erosion.

Synonyms

sericea lespedeza
vsLespedeza cuneata
  • Specialized
9.8

A plant that lives many years and is grown for hay and animal feed on poor soil

is the scientific name for that same forage plant
Lespedeza sericea
vsLespedeza cuneata
  • Specialized
9.6

A plant that lives for several years and is grown for animal feed and hay on poor soils

is the specific species widely grown for forage on marginal land

Surface Forms

Lespedeza cuneata singular
Lespedeza cuneatas plural

Morphology

lespedeza + cuneata

This is a botanical binomial composed of a genus name + specific epithet, so a learner who knows 'Lespedeza' (a forage/shrub plant) and the epithet could infer it names a particular species of Lespedeza and therefore a plant. However, the full pragmatic details in the definition (perennial, widely grown for forage/hay on poor land) are not directly derivable from the epithet and require domain knowledge; Latin epithets are often opaque to learners. For these reasons the composition gives partial but not complete predictability.

Etymology

Lespedeza cuneata comes from scientific names: the first word Lespedeza is the plant group and the second word cuneata means 'wedge-shaped', a picture of its small wedge-shaped leaves. Farmers plant Lespedeza cuneata as a tough forage and to help poor soil, so the name gives an easy image to remember the plant and its use.