arolla pine
- noun
- UK
- We saw a towering arolla pine while hiking in the Alps, its needles clustered in groups of five.
Examples
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The seeds of the arolla pine are sometimes used as a food delicacy in certain European regions.
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The resin from the arolla pine has been traditionally collected for medicinal purposes.
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The arolla pine is known for its unique five-needle bundles.
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Many hikers admire the beauty of the arolla pine in the Alps.
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On our hike, we spotted a tall arolla pine with its distinctive five-needle clusters.
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The delicious nuts from the arolla pine are often gathered during harvest festivals in Europe.
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The arolla pine releases a sweet resin that has been used in traditional medicine for centuries.
Synonyms
A large European pine with clusters of five needles that makes edible nuts and sticky resin
A large tree from central Europe with groups of five needles and edible seeds
A large mountain pine with clusters of five needles and small edible seeds
A large pine tree from the high Alps that makes edible seeds called cembra nuts
Surface Forms
Morphology
arolla + pine
The structure 'A B' (modifier + pine) is a straightforward compound denoting a subtype: 'pine' clearly identifies the category (a coniferous tree) and 'arolla' functions as a specific modifier/name. Even if 'arolla' is not a common lexical item, the compositional pattern (e.g. 'Scots pine', 'stone pine') is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows 'pine' and understands that the first element names the variety can infer it means a kind of pine tree.
Etymology
The name arolla pine comes from a mountain place called Arolla, where this pine grows in the Alps. People there long collected its tasty seeds and sticky resin, so the place name became the tree name and today arolla pine brings to mind a tall Alpine pine with five-needle clusters and edible nuts.