Rocky mountain pinon
- noun
- /ˈrɑːki ˈmaʊntən ˈpɪn.jən/
- Specialized
:
piñón de las Montañas Rocosas
- Many Native American tribes harvested Rocky mountain pinon nuts as an important seasonal food.
Examples
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The Rocky mountain pinon typically grows on dry, rocky slopes at higher elevations.
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Wildlife such as birds and squirrels rely on Rocky mountain pinon seeds for nutrition.
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The Rocky mountain pinon grows in arid regions.
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Many people enjoy the Rocky mountain pinon nuts.
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Many Native American tribes harvested Rocky mountain pinon nuts as an important seasonal food.
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Wildlife such as birds and squirrels rely on Rocky mountain pinon seeds for nutrition.
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The Rocky mountain pinon typically grows on dry, rocky slopes at higher elevations.
Synonyms
1
9.1
A small pine tree that makes edible seeds called pine nuts
1
7.7
A small pine tree with short needles that makes edible seeds
A small pine tree in the southwestern United States with edible seeds called pine nuts
A small pine tree that produces edible nuts
A small tree with needle leaves that makes edible seeds called pine nuts
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase composes a geographic modifier ('Rocky Mountain' / rocky + mountain) with the head noun 'pinon' (a type of pine), so its meaning — a pinon tree associated with the Rocky Mountains — is directly derivable from the parts. Although 'pinon' is somewhat specialized vocabulary, the noun-modifier structure is regular and compositional, so a learner who knows the constituent words can infer the referent.
Etymology
Rocky mountain pinon is named for where it grows and the nuts it makes. The part Rocky mountain points to the high, rocky hills and pinon comes from Spanish for 'pine nut', so the name means a small pine that gives edible nuts in that area.