mountain ash
- noun
- /ˈmaʊntən æʃ/
- Australian
:
ceniza de montaña
- During her hike, she noticed a mountain ash tree with its pinnate leaves shimmering in the sunlight.
- mountain ash (S. alnifolia; Zones 3-7)
Examples
-
She had walked first through the older part of the cemetery, which was nicely cluttered with birches, aspens, and mountain ash, the latter covered with brilliant red berries that would feed the birds and help them survive the long winter to come.
Fiction book (1997) -
The closest they have to apples is northern mountain ash (Sorbus decora).
Blog text (34) -
As she passed along the bank near the creek, she broke off a sprig of mountain ash berries, a bunch so dazzlingly red they could have been rubies.
Fiction book (1997) -
As she walked through the park, she admired the clusters of white flowers and bright red berries on the mountain ash trees.
-
The gardener planted several mountain ash trees for their beautiful summer blooms and vibrant autumn foliage.
Synonyms
1
8.6
A small tree from Europe and Asia with many small leaves and groups of orange-red berries
A European and Asian tree with many small leaflets and clusters of orange-red berries
A small tree with white flowers and red berries that birds eat
A small tree from Europe and Asia with leaves made of many small leaflets and clusters of orange-red berries
A small tree with divided leaves and clusters of bright red berries from eastern North America
A North American tree with leaves made of several small sections and clusters of bright red berries
A small tree from the west coast of North America with white flowers and orange-red berries
A small tree from the western coast of North America with groups of red berries
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound 'mountain ash' is compositionally built from 'mountain' + 'ash' and will be interpreted by a B1 learner as a type of ash tree associated with mountains or mountainous areas. Although there is a technical botanical nuance (it refers to a eucalyptus species rather than a true Fraxinus), the general meaning 'a tree (an ash) linked with mountains' is directly derivable from the constituents.
Etymology
Mountain ash names the rowan tree that has many small leaflets and bright red or orange berries. People called it an ash because its leaves look like the ash tree and added mountain because it often grows on hills, so the name describes an ash-like tree of the mountains.