scented wattle
- noun
- US
- The scented wattle blooms in late spring, filling the air with its sweet fragrance.
Examples
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Many perfumers value scented wattle for its aromatic yellow flowers.
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Gardeners in tropical regions often plant scented wattle to attract pollinators and add color.
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The scented wattle blooms beautifully in the spring.
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I love the smell of scented wattle in my garden.
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Many perfumers value scented wattle for its aromatic yellow flowers.
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The scented wattle blooms in late spring, filling the air with its sweet fragrance.
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Gardeners in tropical regions often plant scented wattle to attract pollinators and add color.
Synonyms
A small thorny tree with scented yellow flowers used in perfume
A thorny shrub or small tree with fragrant yellow flowers used to make perfume
A thorny bush or small tree from warm regions with fragrant yellow flowers used to make perfume
A small tree or bush with thorns and sweet-smelling yellow flowers that people use to make perfume
A small thorny tree with sweet yellow flowers used to make perfume
A thorny plant from tropical America with yellow fragrant flowers used to make perfume
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is a straightforward composition of 'scented' (fragrant) + 'wattle' (a type of shrub/tree), so the phrase denotes a wattle that has a pleasant smell. This simple adjective+noun pattern is cross-linguistically common and would be directly understandable to a B1 learner who knows both constituent words.
Etymology
Scented wattle gets its name from its sweet-smelling flowers and the old word wattle, which meant a fence made of woven sticks. Because the plant has thin, stick-like branches and very fragrant yellow blooms used in perfume, the name points to a fragrant shrub used in perfumery.