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Glite Dictionary
bur reed

bur reed

9.9
A marsh plant with long narrow leaves and round spiky fruits that stick to fur
  • noun
  • /bɜr rid/
  • Specialized
translation icon : junco
  • The bur reed grows near the pond.

Examples

  • Restoring wetlands often involves replanting native species like bur reed.

  • We spotted a bur reed growing along the edge of the pond.

  • The spiky fruit of the bur reed can sometimes cling to animal fur.

  • Many bur reeds thrive in wetland areas.

  • In the wetland, the bur reed grows alongside other aquatic plants, providing habitat for wildlife.

  • The bur reed stands tall in the marsh, its prickly seed heads attracting birds in search of food.

  • During our nature walk, we identified the bur reed by its long, narrow leaves and distinctive round fruit.

Synonyms

Sparganium
vsbur reed
  • Specialized
9.9

A water plant that grows in ponds and has round seed heads

is the common name for those marsh plants used more generally

Surface Forms

bur reed singular
bur reeds plural

Morphology

bur + reed

The compound denotes a reed characterized by burs or burr-like seedpods, so its meaning is directly derivable from combining 'bur' (spiny seedpod) with 'reed' (marsh plant). Such descriptive noun compounding is common and transparent cross-linguistically, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily understand the MWE.

Etymology

Bur reed probably comes from the plant's look: a reed, a tall water plant, with round, prickly bur fruits that 'cling' to animal fur or clothes, so the name describes its burr-like, sticky seed heads.