shoo fly
- noun
- Specialized
:
hierba shoo fly
- Many gardeners admire the unique fruit of the shoo fly after its flowers fade.
Examples
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Despite its beauty, the shoo fly is considered invasive in some regions.
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In the garden, the shoo fly blooms beautifully.
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The seeds of the shoo fly are often used as ornamental plants in gardens.
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The shoo fly plant is known for its unique appearance.
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The shoo fly is often used in gardens for its striking blue-and-white flowers.
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Many people grow the shoo fly for its interesting bladder-like fruit.
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Gardeners appreciate the shoo fly not only for its flowers but also for its unique fruit structure.
Synonyms
A rough South American plant grown for its blue-and-white flowers and lantern-like fruits
A tall tropical plant that grows quickly, smells strong, has large trumpet-shaped flowers, and prickly poisonous fruit
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound 'shoo' + 'fly' evokes 'something that chases away flies,' so learners who know the parts could plausibly infer it names an object that repels flies. However, the actual sense is a specific herb (a plant species) with botanical properties that are not directly predictable from the constituents, so the relation is only partial and requires exposure for the precise meaning.
Etymology
Shoo fly may come from the picture of the words shoo and fly. People likely planted this plant near doors or windows to 'shoo' flies away, and that simple idea became the name for the garden plant.
