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Glite Dictionary
Rhus ovata

Rhus ovata

9.9
An evergreen shrub from southwest United States and northwest Mexico with red-yellow flower clusters and small sticky fruits
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : Rhus ovata
  • Botanists study the glandular fruit of Rhus ovata for its unique adaptations.

Examples

  • The Rhus ovata grows abundantly in the chaparral regions of California.

  • Hikers admire the bright flower clusters of Rhus ovata in spring.

  • The Rhus ovata is a beautiful shrub.

  • I saw a Rhus ovata in the garden.

  • Hikers admire the bright flower clusters of Rhus ovata in spring.

  • The Rhus ovata grows abundantly in the chaparral regions of California.

  • Botanists study the glandular fruit of Rhus ovata for its unique adaptations.

Synonyms

sugar-bush
vsRhus ovata
  • US
9.9

An evergreen shrub with reddish yellow flower spikes and sticky, hairy fruits

is native to the southwest US and northwestern Mexico rather than the southeast
sugar sumac
vsRhus ovata
  • US
9.9

A small evergreen bush with reddish yellow flower spikes and hairy fruits

is native to the southwest US and northwestern Mexico rather than the southeast

Surface Forms

Rhus ovata singular
Rhus ovatas plural

Morphology

Rhus + ovata

This is a botanical binomial: knowing 'Rhus' (the sumac genus) lets a learner infer the expression refers to a kind of shrub, but the second element 'ovata' is a Latin epithet (undefined here) and not transparent to an average B1 learner, so the full descriptive meaning cannot be derived from the parts. The genus gives partial category information but the specific sense remains unpredictable without prior exposure or knowledge of botanical Latin.

Etymology

Rhus ovata comes from old plant names: Rhus was the old name for 'sumac' and ovata comes from a word meaning 'egg-shaped', because the shrub's leaves are rounded like small eggs, so the name describes this evergreen shrub.