star anise
- noun
- /ˈstɑr ˈænɪs/
:
anís estrellado
- I bought some star anise at the local market.
- star anise and cinnamon
Examples
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The recipe called for several spices, including star anise and cinnamon, to create a warm aroma.
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In making the spiced tea, she included star anise to give it a unique taste.
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A star anise tree can be identified by its glossy leaves and star-shaped fruit.
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Despite its name, star anise blossoms have little to no fragrance.
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The dried fruit of the star anise is often used in Asian cooking.
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The recipe calls for star anise and cinnamon.
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To enhance the flavor of the dish, add 1 whole star anise while cooking.
Synonyms
A star-shaped spice pod with a strong sweet smell used in cooking
A spice shaped like a star with a sweet licorice smell used in Asian cooking and traditional medicine
A small evergreen tree from Japan and Taiwan with star-shaped fruit that is poisonous if eaten
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound directly combines 'star' (indicating a star-like shape) with 'anise' (the spice), so the meaning 'a star-shaped spice similar to anise' is transparently derivable from its parts. This noun–noun composition is a regular, cross-linguistic naming pattern, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would very likely infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Star anise for the tree comes from the plant's seed pods that look like a shiny star and that produce the spice anise, so the whole tree was called star anise.
