Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
Medicago falcata

Medicago falcata

9.9
A European plant with bright yellow flowers and curved seed pods
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : Medicago falcata
  • Botanists can distinguish Medicago falcata by its unique sickle-shaped seed pods.

Examples

  • The bright yellow flowers of Medicago falcata appear in mid-summer and attract numerous pollinators.

  • Medicago falcata is often found growing on roadsides and dry grasslands in Europe and North America.

  • The Medicago falcata is often found in meadows.

  • Have you seen the Medicago falcata blooming this spring?

  • Medicago falcata is often found growing on roadsides and dry grasslands in Europe and North America.

  • The bright yellow flowers of Medicago falcata appear in mid-summer and attract numerous pollinators.

  • Botanists can distinguish Medicago falcata by its unique sickle-shaped seed pods.

Synonyms

sickle medick
vsMedicago falcata
  • Specialized
9.9

A clover plant with yellow flowers and curved seed pods like a sickle

is the formal species name rather than a common name
sickle alfalfa
vsMedicago falcata
  • Specialized
9.5

A plant with yellow flowers and curved seed pods grown for animal feed

is the formal species name rather than an alternative common term
sickle lucerne
vsMedicago falcata
  • UK
9.9

A plant like a clover with bright yellow flowers and curved seed pods

is the formal species name rather than a regional common name

Surface Forms

Medicago falcata singular
Medicago falcatae plural

Morphology

Medicago + falcata

This is a taxonomic binomial combining the genus name 'Medicago' with a descriptive species epithet; 'falcata' is a Latin-derived adjective meaning 'sickle-shaped', so the compound denotes a Medicago species with sickle-shaped pods. Because the overall meaning is built compositionally from the two constituents, a B1 learner who knows both constituent meanings can infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Medicago falcata comes from old Greek and Latin words. The first part, Medicago, means 'clover from Media', an old region, and the second part, falcata, means 'sickle-shaped', a clear image of the plant's curved seed pods, so the name tells you this clover has sickle-shaped pods.