shepherd's clock

9.9

A small plant with yellow flowers that open in the morning and close by afternoon

noun

: reloj de pastor

The shepherd's clock opens its flowers early in the morning and closes them by early afternoon.

Examples

Gardeners sometimes call the hawkweed shepherd's clock because of its timekeeping flowers.
The shepherd's clock blooms in the early morning.
Along the edge of the meadow, shepherd's clock blooms created a swath of yellow.
Many gardeners appreciate the shepherd's clock for its beauty.
The shepherd's clock opens its bright yellow flowers at dawn and closes them by midday.
In the garden, the shepherd's clock is known for signaling the time with its daily blooming pattern.
Farmers often notice that the shepherd's clock flowers promptly open in the morning sunshine.

Synonyms

Tragopogon pratensis

vsshepherd's clock

Specialized

9.9

A common wild plant with yellow daisy-like flowers often found in meadows

is noted for opening and closing to mark times of day

meadow salsify

vsshepherd's clock

9.9

A common weed with yellow flowers that grows near roads and in lawns

is used to tell time by opening and closing at certain times

goatsbeard

vsshepherd's clock

9.9

A wild plant with yellow flowers and fluffy seed heads

is traditionally used for timekeeping by opening and closing daily

Surface Forms

shepherd's clock singular

shepherd's clocks plural

Morphology

shepherd's + clock

A B1 learner who knows 'shepherd' and 'clock' will most likely interpret the phrase as something owned by or used by a shepherd (a person) or a timepiece, not as the name of a plant. The specific botanical meaning—a weedy plant that opens/closes at certain times—is not predictable from the literal constituents, so the expression is idiomatic/opaque to learners.

Etymology

Shepherd's clock is a plant whose yellow flowers open in the morning and close in the afternoon, and one popular story says this regular movement made a small natural clock a shepherd could use to tell the 'time'.