fragrant bedstraw
1
9.5
- noun
- UK
- The shady path was bordered with fragrant bedstraw, filling the air with its sweet scent.
Examples
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Dried fragrant bedstraw can be used to perfume linens and clothes.
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Gardeners often plant fragrant bedstraw as an attractive ground cover beneath trees.
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The fragrant bedstraw filled the garden with its lovely scent.
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Many gardeners choose fragrant bedstraw for its beautiful flowers.
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Dried fragrant bedstraw can be used to perfume linens and clothes.
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The shady path was bordered with fragrant bedstraw, filling the air with its sweet scent.
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Gardeners often plant fragrant bedstraw as an attractive ground cover beneath trees.
Synonyms
1
9.5
A small woodland plant with white flowers and a sweet smell
1
7.9
A low plant with small white flowers and a sweet smell used to cover the ground and flavor drinks
1
9.9
A small plant that grows near the ground with white flowers that smell sweet
A fragrant ground cover plant with white flowers that people use to flavor wine or scent clothes
A small green plant with a sweet smell often used to flavor drinks and as a ground cover
Surface Forms
Morphology
This is a straightforward adjective + noun composition: 'fragrant' modifies 'bedstraw', so the phrase simply means 'bedstraw that emits a pleasant scent'. The meaning is directly derivable from the constituents and follows a common cross-linguistic pattern, so a B1 learner who knows both words would understand it.
Etymology
The noun fragrant bedstraw comes from the old use of putting the sweet-smelling plant into beds as a kind of bed straw to scent mattresses and keep clothes fresh. That's why the name points to a pleasant-smelling plant used to perfume linens and as a ground cover.