lemon sumac
- noun
- US
:
sumaque limón
- The lemon sumac in our garden filled the air with its sweet fragrance every spring.
Examples
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Clusters of red hairy fruits on the lemon sumac attract birds throughout the autumn.
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Botanists studied the unique catkin-like flowers of the lemon sumac.
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The lemon sumac tree grows well in sunny areas.
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I saw a lemon sumac in my neighbor's garden.
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The lemon sumac in our garden filled the air with its sweet fragrance every spring.
-
Clusters of red hairy fruits on the lemon sumac attract birds throughout the autumn.
-
Botanists studied the unique catkin-like flowers of the lemon sumac.
Synonyms
4
6.5
A small tree or shrub with clusters of red berries used as a spice and for decoration
A small shrub with scented leaves, yellow green flower spikes and red hairy berries
A low shrub with three-part leaves and red fruit that smell sweet when crushed
Surface Forms
Morphology
This is a straightforward modifier + noun formation: 'lemon' describes a property of the 'sumac' (e.g. lemon-scented or lemon-colored), so the phrase denotes a type or variety of sumac with lemon-like qualities. Such adjectival noun compounds are compositional and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can readily infer the meaning.
Etymology
Lemon sumac may get its name from the plant's lemon-like smell. People added lemon to sumac because its flowers and leaves give a fresh lemon scent, so the name tells us it is a sumac that smells like lemon.