red osier dogwood
- noun
- /rɛd ˈoʊʒər ˈdɔɡwʊd/
- US
:
sauce rojo
- In spring, the red osier dogwood bursts into bloom with beautiful white flowers along the stream.
Examples
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The bright stems of the red osier dogwood stand out beautifully against the winter snow.
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In early summer, the red osier dogwood blooms with delicate white flowers.
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Along the lakeshore, clusters of red osier dogwood provide shelter for birds and wildlife.
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The red osier dogwood grows near the river.
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Have you seen a red osier dogwood in bloom?
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The clusters of small white flowers on the red osier dogwood attract many pollinators in the wetland.
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You can identify the red osier dogwood by its reddish-purple twigs and lush green leaves in the garden.
Synonyms
A North American shrub with red stems and small white flowers
A North American shrub with red branches and white flowers
A bush with reddish-purple twigs and white flowers that grows near wet ground
A small North American tree grown in gardens for its white spring flowers and red berries
A small bush with red stems, white flowers, and berries often grown in gardens
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound is a straightforward descriptive name: 'red' (color) + 'osier' (willow-like twig) + 'dogwood' (a type of shrub/tree) composes to mean a dogwood with red/wiry twigs, matching the given definition. Even though 'osier' is a rarer lexical item, if a B1 learner knows the three constituents the overall referent (a red-stemmed dogwood shrub) is directly inferable from their combined meanings.
Etymology
Red osier dogwood gets its name from the shrub's bright red stems and thin twigs: red for the colour, osier for a thin, willow-like twig, and dogwood because it is a type of dogwood. So the name helps you picture the shrub with red twigs that stand out in winter and along streams.
