bird of paradise
- noun
- /bɜrd əv ˈpærəˌdaɪs/
:
flor ave del paraíso
- At the tropical resort, I marveled at the striking bird of paradise plants lining the pathways.
- bird of paradise flower
- giant bird of paradise
Examples
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Birds of paradise next to people's driveways, exotic palms in front of run-down apartment buildings.
Fiction book (1993) -
The vibrant bird of paradise in my garden attracts many admiring visitors.
-
She enjoyed the stunning bird of paradise flowers that bloom in her backyard every spring.
Synonyms
A plant from South Africa with orange and blue flowers that look like a bird
How Decorative
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase composes from 'bird' + 'paradise', so a learner can infer a very beautiful or exotic bird (a bird associated with a paradisiacal quality). However, the full, specific sense — that it names particular brilliantly coloured species native to New Guinea with elaborate courtship displays — is lexicalized and not fully predictable from the parts, so prior exposure or encyclopedic knowledge is needed.
Etymology
Bird of paradise gets its name from the plant's flower. The bright bloom looks like a flying bird, and its exotic look made people think of a 'paradise', so the plant was called that.