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Glite Dictionary
pepper shrub

pepper shrub

8.8
An evergreen shrub or small tree with leaves that have red and yellow patches and small black fruits
  • noun
translation icon : arbusto de pimienta
  • The small black fruits hanging from the pepper shrub attract many birds.

Examples

  • The garden features a rare pepper shrub known for its colorful leaves.

  • She planted a pepper shrub to add vibrant colors to her backyard.

  • The pepper shrub in my garden is blooming.

  • I bought a pepper shrub last week.

  • She planted a pepper shrub to add vibrant colors to her backyard.

  • The garden features a rare pepper shrub known for its colorful leaves.

  • The small black fruits hanging from the pepper shrub attract many birds.

Synonyms

Pseudowintera colorata
vspepper shrub
  • Specialized
9.9

A New Zealand evergreen shrub or small tree with red and yellow leaves and small black fruits

is the same plant but uses the more general common name
Wintera colorata
vspepper shrub
  • New Zealand
9.9

An evergreen New Zealand shrub with red and yellow spotted leaves and small black fruits

is the same plant but recorded with a descriptive common name

Surface Forms

pepper shrub singular
pepper shrubs plural

Morphology

pepper + shrub

The compound follows a straightforward noun+noun modifier pattern: 'pepper' specifies the type of 'shrub', so a learner who knows both words will infer it is a shrub associated with pepper (i.e., a plant bearing pepper-like fruits). This compositional, descriptive formation is common cross-linguistically and therefore immediately understandable to a B1 learner.

Etymology

Pepper shrub may get its name because its little black fruits look like 'pepper' seeds and its leaves are often 'peppered' with red and yellow spots. That's why pepper refers to the spotted look or pepper-like berries and shrub means a small bush, so the name describes a small evergreen bush with colorful, spotted leaves and tiny black fruits.