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Glite Dictionary
Maclura pomifera

Maclura pomifera

9.9
A small thorny tree with glossy leaves, inedible fruit like an orange and hard wood used for bows
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : Maclura pomifera
  • The hard wood of the Maclura pomifera was prized for making bows by Native Americans.

Examples

  • The inedible, wrinkled fruit of the Maclura pomifera is often mistaken for an orange.

  • The Maclura pomifera tree can grow up to 30 feet tall.

  • A tall hedge of Maclura pomifera bordered the old farm property.

  • Have you ever seen a Maclura pomifera in bloom?

  • The hard wood of the Maclura pomifera was prized for making bows by Native Americans.

  • The inedible, wrinkled fruit of the Maclura pomifera is often mistaken for an orange.

  • The Maclura pomifera tree can grow up to 30 feet tall.

Synonyms

bow wood
vsMaclura pomifera
  • Specialized
9.9

A small tree with hard orange wood used to make bows

is the botanical name for the same tree rather than a usage label
osage orange
vsMaclura pomifera
  • US
9.9

A small tree with thorny branches and large inedible greenish-yellow fruit

is the botanical name for the same tree rather than a common name

Surface Forms

Maclura pomifera singular
Maclura pomiferas plural

Morphology

Maclura + pomifera

This is a Latin binomial (scientific) name composed of a genus and species epithet rather than ordinary English words; the parts are not familiar lexical items for a B1 learner (the second element is not found in the dictionary). Even though botanical epithets sometimes encode meaning in Latin, that knowledge is specialized and not available to average learners, so the overall meaning cannot be derived from the constituents.

Etymology

Maclura pomifera is often called 'Osage orange' because the Osage people used its very hard wood to make bows. Its fruit looks like a big orange but is 'inedible', and that simple image helps explain why the tree is known for its hard wood and orange-like fruit today.