jumby bead

9.9

A large Caribbean tree whose bright red seeds people use to make jewellery

noun

: semilla de jumby

The bright red jumby bead seeds are often used in jewelry across the Caribbean.

Examples

Children in the village collected jumby bead seeds to make colorful necklaces.
The jumby bead tree is native to the Caribbean.
Botanists identified the large tree as a jumby bead growing near the river.
I saw a jumby bead during my trip to Jamaica.
Botanists identified the large tree as a jumby bead growing near the river.
Children in the village collected jumby bead seeds to make colorful necklaces.
The bright red jumby bead seeds are often used in jewelry across the Caribbean.

Synonyms

Ormosia coarctata

vsjumby bead

Specialized

9.9

A tree from the West Indies that is larger than a similar species but has smaller leaflets and seeds

is the common name used for that same species

jumbie bead

vsjumby bead

9.9

A Caribbean tree with small hard seeds used to make jewelry

is the same name but spelled with y instead of ie

jumby tree

vsjumby bead

9.9

A small Caribbean tree with pointed leaves, purple flowers, and red or black seeds that have dark spots

has smaller leaflets and seeds rather than large ones

bead tree

vsjumby bead

Specialized

9.9

A small tropical tree with bright red or black seeds used for jewelry

has smaller leaflets and seeds rather than large spotted ones

Surface Forms

jumby bead singular

jumby beads plural

Morphology

jumby + bead

The headword 'jumby' is not a known English lexical item here and provides no transparent semantic cue, while 'bead' refers to a small jewel and does not suggest a tree. The compound is a regional, lexicalized plant name (botanical/vernacular) whose meaning cannot be derived from its parts, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents would not predict the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Jumby bead comes from the bright red seeds of a Caribbean tree, which people used like small beads for necklaces. One popular story says jumby is from a local word for 'spirit' because people used the seeds as 'charms' against bad luck, so the name came to mean the tree and its seeds.