Telopea speciosissima
- noun
- Australian
- The brilliant red flowers of the Telopea speciosissima attract many birds during spring.
Examples
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The emblem of New South Wales is the Telopea speciosissima, reflecting its cultural significance.
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Gardeners prize Telopea speciosissima for its striking appearance and hardiness in Australian gardens.
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The Telopea speciosissima blooms beautifully in spring.
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Have you seen the Telopea speciosissima in the botanical garden?
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Gardeners prize Telopea speciosissima for its striking appearance and hardiness in Australian gardens.
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The brilliant red flowers of the Telopea speciosissima attract many birds during spring.
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The emblem of New South Wales is the Telopea speciosissima, reflecting its cultural significance.
Synonyms
1
9.9
A shrub or small tree from Australia with bright red flowers in dense groups
1
9.9
A group of large Australian shrubs with bright, showy, often red flowers
How Showy
Surface Forms
Morphology
Telopea + speciosissima
This is a Linnaean binomial combining the genus name 'Telopea' (a shrub with bright flowers) with a Latin specific epithet. A learner who knows the genus can infer it denotes a particular species of that shrub, but the epithet 'speciosissima' is Latin/technical and the precise attributes (native range, common name ‘waratah’, or the detailed description) are not predictable from everyday English vocabulary. Because the name partly composes meaning (genus + species) but requires specialist or Latin knowledge for the full sense, it is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Telopea speciosissima is a scientific name that praises the plant's showy red flowers. The word speciosissima means 'very beautiful' in Latin, and Telopea may come from an old Greek word for 'seen from far away', which fits because the bright flower heads stand out in the bush, so the name points to the plant's striking look.