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Glite Dictionary
leaf shape

leaf shape

1 2.8
The outline of a leaf that helps identify plants
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : forma de la hoja
  • The unique leaf shape of the maple tree is easily recognizable during the fall.

It's a pack of autumn sequins, lots of different leaf shapes.

Examples

  • Such a unique leaf shape, golden pothos down here on the ground.

  • The noise-reducing capability of the plants is associated with leaf shape.

    Academic text (2010)

  • The noise attenuations caused by hedges are mainly due to the foliage, stems, leaf shape, leaf tactility, and other biological factors.

    Academic text (2010)

  • The biological factors of the plants, such as leaf shape, leaf weight, and leaf tactility, directly affect the noise attenuation value, including dL Aep and the frequencies.

    Academic text (2010)

  • The authors studied the relationship between each of the plant's characteristics (the characteristics include leaf area, leaf fresh weight, leaf tactility, and leaf shape) and their average relative noise attenuation (dL Aep).

    Academic text (2010)

  • Botanists often classify plants based on their leaf shape, which can vary significantly between species.

  • In gardening, understanding leaf shape can help you identify different types of plants.

Synonyms

leaf form
vsleaf shape
5.6

The shape of a plant leaf that helps identify species

is more about formal outline classification within botany

Surface Forms

leaf shape singular
leaf shapes plural

Morphology

leaf + shape

The meaning 'the form or outline of a leaf' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'leaf' (the plant organ) with 'shape' (outline/contour); this noun–noun description follows a standard compositional pattern where the second noun denotes an attribute of the first. The same descriptive construction exists in many languages (e.g., Spanish 'forma de la hoja'), so a B1 learner who knows both constituent words will readily infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Leaf shape comes from the simple idea of a plant's leaf and its shape, the way the leaf looks or its 'outline'. People who study plants used these clear pictures to tell kinds of plants apart, so today leaf shape means the leaf's 'form' or 'outline'.