fringed orchis
- noun
- Specialized
- The delicate petals of the fringed orchis are easily recognized by their deeply divided fringe.
Examples
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The fringed orchis blooms in wet meadows during the summer months.
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Botanists were excited to discover a rare fringed orchis along the woodland trail.
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Look at that fringed orchis!
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The fringed orchis blooms beautifully in the summer.
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The fringed orchis blooms in wet meadows during the summer months.
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Botanists were excited to discover a rare fringed orchis along the woodland trail.
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The delicate petals of the fringed orchis are easily recognized by their deeply divided fringe.
Synonyms
A type of orchid with a deeply cut lower petal that blooms in summer
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly and compositionally derived from 'fringed' (having an edged ornamentation) modifying 'orchis' (a type of orchid), so it denotes an orchis that has a fringed margin. This is a standard adjective + noun composition common across languages; even though 'orchis' is botanical, a B1 learner who knows both words will readily infer the phrase's meaning.
Etymology
The name fringed orchis comes from the flower's look: the part called the 'lip' has many thin, cut edges like a fringe. So fringed describes that frilly edge and orchis is the name for this kind of orchid, which is why the name means an orchid with a fringed lip.