blue ash

8.8

An American ash tree with blue-green leaves and hard brown wood

noun
/blu æʃ/

: fresno azul

In spring, the leaves of the blue ash appear a distinct bluish-green among the other trees.

Examples

Carpenters prize blue ash for its hard, durable lumber.
The woods behind their house are full of blue ash and hickory trees.
Look at that tall blue ash over there!
I saw a beautiful blue ash in the park.
Carpenters prize blue ash for its hard, durable lumber.
In spring, the leaves of the blue ash appear a distinct bluish-green among the other trees.
The woods behind their house are full of blue ash and hickory trees.

Synonyms

Fraxinus quadrangulata

vsblue ash

Specialized

9.9

A type of ash tree from the central and southern United States with blue-green leaves and hard brown wood

is the common everyday name used instead of the scientific term

Surface Forms

blue ash singular

blue ashes plural

Morphology

blue + ash

The phrase is a straightforward adjective + noun combination where 'blue' describes a property of the 'ash' tree, so the referent is a type of ash with bluish foliage. This compositional pattern is regular and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows 'blue' and 'ash' can infer the meaning without prior exposure.

Etymology

Blue ash gets its name from the tree's pale blue-green leaves and from being a kind of ash tree with very hard wood. So the name now refers to a North American tree with 'bluish-green leaves' and 'hard, brown wood'.