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Glite Dictionary
carnation family

carnation family

6.4
A group of flowering plants that includes carnations and pinks
  • noun
  • /kɑrˈneɪʃən ˈfæmɪli/
  • Specialized
translation icon : familia de las claveles
  • Botanists have identified over two thousand species within the carnation family.

Examples

  • The carnation family includes many beautiful flowers.

  • The carnation family includes popular garden flowers such as pinks and sweet williams.

  • Many species in the carnation family thrive in temperate climates around the world.

  • Did you know that the carnation family has over 300 species?

  • Carnations belong to the carnation family, which includes many colorful flowering plants.

  • The carnation family features several species known for their fragrant blooms.

  • Botanists classify pinks and carnations under the carnation family due to their shared characteristics.

Synonyms

family Caryophyllaceae
vscarnation family
  • Specialized
9.1

A group of flowering plants like carnations and pinks

is the common name rather than the scientific label for the same group
Caryophyllaceae
vscarnation family
  • Specialized
9.9

A family of flowering plants that includes carnations and pinks

is the English common name instead of the Latin scientific term
pink family
vscarnation family
6.9

A group of flowering plants like carnations with thick stem joints

is the alternative common name that highlights a different typical species

Surface Forms

carnation family singular
carnation families plural

Morphology

carnation + family

The meaning is directly compositional: 'carnation' names a flower and 'family' denotes a taxonomic group, so a learner who knows both words can infer this is the family that contains carnations. The 'X family' construction is a common, cross-linguistically transparent noun-noun composition, so the overall sense is predictable from the parts.

Etymology

Carnation family gets its name from the familiar flower carnation, because plant scientists used that flower as the example for a whole group of similar plants. So the phrase means 'a group of related plants that includes carnations and pinks'.