mayflower

1 9.2

A low evergreen plant with thick leaves and groups of small pink or white fragrant flowers

noun
/ˈmeɪˌflaʊər/

: flor de mayo

We spotted delicate pink mayflowers growing along the path in the wooded area.

Examples

The trees had only begun to leaf out, allowing the sun to penetrate to the forest floor; dogtooth violets and mayflowers bloomed everywhere among tender ferns.

Fiction book (1999)
In early spring, the garden was filled with clusters of fragrant mayflowers blooming brightly.
The sweet scent of mayflowers filled the air as we walked through the blooming garden.

Synonyms

trailing arbutus

vsmayflower

1 9.9

A low shrub that keeps green leaves all year and has pink or white flowers that smell sweet

is another common English name for the same shrub

Epigaea repens

vsmayflower

Specialized

9.9

A low evergreen shrub with thick, tough leaves and groups of fragrant pink or white flowers

is the common everyday name rather than the scientific label

Surface Forms

mayflower singular

mayflowers plural

Morphology

mayflower = May + flower (transparent) = may + flower

The plant name is a straightforward compound: a flower that typically blooms in May, so its meaning is directly inferable from the parts.

Etymology

Mayflower comes from May and flower because this small, sweet-smelling plant usually blooms in the month of 'May', so the name helps you remember it is one of the first flowers of spring.