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Glite Dictionary
red elm

red elm

6.9
A North American elm tree with red leaves or bark and hard, strong wood
  • noun
  • /rɛd ɛlm/
  • US
translation icon : olmo rojo
  • Growing next to the pond, the red elm provides shade with its broad canopy and rich bark.

Examples

  • Woodworkers appreciate the durability of red elm for crafting furniture and cabinets.

  • The red elm tree in our yard has vibrant reddish leaves that stand out in the fall.

  • Their home was a stone cottage at the east end of the village, sheltered by white oak and red elm, and set back against the wall of the forest close by the channel of the river.

    Fiction book (1991)

Synonyms

Ulmus rubra
vsred elm
  • Specialized
9.9

A North American elm tree with rough, reddish young leaves and hard wood

is the common name used in everyday speech rather than the scientific term
slippery elm
vsred elm
  • Specialized
8.1

A North American tree with rough leaves whose inner bark is used in medicine

is more associated with traditional inner bark herbal uses than the scientific description

Surface Forms

red elm singular
red elms plural

Morphology

red + elm

This is a straightforward adjective + noun combination: 'red' describes a color property of an 'elm', so a B1 learner who knows both words will infer it denotes an elm with red-colored features. The construction is compositional and cross-linguistically common (color + noun), not idiomatic or metaphorical.

Etymology

Red elm comes from a simple, visible picture: people named a type of elm by its reddish look, calling it red because of its bark or new leaves. So today red elm means a kind of elm tree known for its reddish parts and for its strong 'wood'.