jumby bean
- noun
- UK
:
frijol jumby
- The jumby bean tree produces striking panicles of purple flowers each spring.
Examples
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The brightly colored seeds of the jumby bean are sometimes used for jewelry in the Caribbean.
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Botanists documented several specimens of jumby bean during their expedition to Venezuela.
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The jumby bean tree grows well in tropical climates.
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Many gardeners appreciate the jumby beans for their unique flowers.
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The jumby bean tree produces striking panicles of purple flowers each spring.
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Botanists documented several specimens of jumby bean during their expedition to Venezuela.
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The brightly colored seeds of the jumby bean are sometimes used for jewelry in the Caribbean.
Synonyms
A small tropical tree with purple flowers and black or red seeds often used as beads
A small Caribbean tree with pointed leaves, purple flowers, and red or black seeds that have dark spots
A small tropical tree with bright red or black seeds used for jewelry
A Caribbean tree with small hard seeds used to make jewelry
Surface Forms
Morphology
jumby + bean
The expression refers to a lexicalized, region-specific plant name and cannot be predicted from its parts: 'jumby' is not a productive English word (dictionary entry missing) and looks like a local/proper name, while 'bean' only signals a seed/plant but not the specific tree. Because one constituent is opaque and the overall meaning is a conventionalized species name, a B1 learner who knows the individual words would not reliably infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Jumby bean may come from a Caribbean word 'jumbee' meaning a spirit, and people thought the tree's bright red and black seeds looked like small charms. Those shiny seeds were often worn or kept as 'lucky charms', so the plant became known as the jumby bean.
