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Glite Dictionary
🌱 A small plant 💐 A blue flower
mouse ear

mouse ear

8.0
A low plant with tiny soft leaves that look like a mouse's ear
  • noun
translation icon : oreja de ratón
  • Some people plant mouse ear as a low-growing ground cover.

Examples

  • The garden was carpeted with mouse ear among the grasses and wildflowers.

  • The mouse ear plant thrives in shady areas.

  • Mouse ear is easy to identify by its tiny, velvety leaves.

  • I found a mouse ear in my garden yesterday.

  • Mouse ear is a popular choice for gardeners looking to create a soft, textured ground cover.

  • You can often find mouse ear thriving in shaded spots near other plants.

  • The delicate leaves of mouse ear provide beautiful greenery in many gardens.

Synonyms

mouse-ear chickweed
vsmouse ear
9.9

A low wild plant with tiny white flowers and soft hairy leaves

is the general name for such low plants not tied to specific genera
mouse-eared chickweed
vsmouse ear
9.9

A small plant with white flowers and soft hairy leaves like a mouse ear

is the wider term applying to similar low plants not only that genus

Surface Forms

mouse ear singular
mouse ears plural

Morphology

mouse + ear

The compound is motivated by a resemblance (something small and ear-shaped) so knowing 'mouse' and 'ear' lets a learner infer a small, ear-like object; however the specific referent being a particular small perennial plant is conventional knowledge not strictly derivable from the parts. Because shape/size is predictable from the constituents but the ontological category (a plant species) and conventional botanical sense require prior exposure, this is best classified as partially transparent.

Etymology

Mouse ear comes from the plant's tiny, round leaves that look like a mouse's ear. That's why people use the name to mean 'a low-growing plant with small leaves'.