plant family
1
4.2
- noun
- /plænt ˈfæmɪli/
- Specialized
:
familia de plantas
- So in switching plant families (from Sapindaceae to Caesalpiniaceae), the butterfly has apparently abandoned its original niche.
- the same plant family
- other plant families
Examples
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The rose is a well-known member of the plant family Rosaceae, which includes many other flowering plants.
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However, unfortunately, legumes contain greater types of toxic and undesirable constituents than other plant families.
Academic text (2014) -
Many years ago, I believed that lichen were species of the moss plant family.
Academic text (2000) -
Species that feed on hosts representing multiple plant families were considered polyphagous.
Academic text (2010) -
A large number of significant shifts in edibility are detected between plant families, but very few within families.
Academic text (2008) -
Seeds of several plant families exhibit the property of physical dormancy.
Academic text (1996) -
They, in fact, note 28 species across 16 plant families that have already evolved resistance to similar herbicides to 2,4-D.
Blog text (25) -
To make a long story short, that holy grail has been found in members of the solanaceous plant family such as eggplant, peppers, and tobacco.
Blog text (20) -
Insect species that feed on a single genus of host plants were considered monophagous, whereas we recorded species that feed on multiple genera of a single plant family as oligophagous.
Academic text (2010) -
This was a relief because the plant family to which bananas (including plantains) belong also includes the genus Ensete or false banana, several species of which are indigenous to equatorial Africa.
Academic text (2006)
Synonyms
155
4.0
A group of related animals, plants, or other things that share similar features
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a group of related plants' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'plant' (a photosynthetic organism) with 'family' (a group or classification), so a B1 learner who knows both words can infer the phrase. This is a standard compositional and cross-linguistically common naming pattern in taxonomy, making the MWE immediately understandable without prior exposure.
Etymology
Plant family comes from the idea of a human 'family'. People grouped similar plants together and called that group a family. That's why plant family means a group of related plants.