five-fingered maidenhair fern
- noun
- US
:
helecho de cinco dedos
- The five-fingered maidenhair fern thrives in the shaded woodlands of North America.
Examples
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Gardeners often admire the delicate structure of the five-fingered maidenhair fern.
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The five-fingered maidenhair fern has beautiful, shiny fronds that add elegance to any garden.
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After planting a five-fingered maidenhair fern, be sure to keep the soil consistently moist.
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The five-fingered maidenhair fern thrives in shady areas.
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I found a five-fingered maidenhair fern in my garden.
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Many people grow the five-fingered maidenhair fern because it requires little maintenance and thrives in low light.
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If you look closely, you'll see that the leaves of the five-fingered maidenhair fern resemble fingers spreading outwards.
Synonyms
A hardy North American fern with shiny dark stalks and fan shaped leaves that grows in cool shade
A North American fern with leaves like a fan that curve back and shiny dark red stems
Surface Forms
Morphology
five-fingered + maidenhair + fern
This is a straightforward descriptive compound: 'maidenhair fern' specifies the plant type and 'five-fingered' describes its fronds as having five finger‑like segments. A B1 learner who knows 'five', 'finger' and 'fern' (and understands adjectival '-ed' or the idea of a modifier) can reliably infer it denotes a maidenhair fern with five-lobed, finger-like leaves, so the meaning is compositional and transparent.
Etymology
The plant name five-fingered maidenhair fern comes from how the plant looks: each leaf spreads like a five-fingered hand, and its many small leaves and shiny dark stems look like soft young maidenhair, so people named it that way. That's why the name is used for this tough North American fern with palm-like leaves and delicate, hair-like parts.
