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Glite Dictionary
sulfur paintbrush

sulfur paintbrush

9.9
A plant with ragged clusters of pale yellow flowers in moist high meadows
  • noun
  • /ˈsʌlfər ˈpeɪntˌbrʌʃ/
  • US
translation icon : pincel de azufre
  • The sulfur paintbrush brightened the alpine meadow with its pale yellow blooms.

Examples

  • Hikers admired the ragged clusters of flowers on the sulfur paintbrush along the trail.

  • Botanists surveyed the area to study the unique population of sulfur paintbrush.

  • Look at that sulfur paintbrush!

  • The sulfur paintbrush blooms beautifully in the spring.

  • Hikers admired the ragged clusters of flowers on the sulfur paintbrush along the trail.

  • The sulfur paintbrush brightened the alpine meadow with its pale yellow blooms.

  • The sulfur paintbrush blooms beautifully in the spring.

Synonyms

Castilleja sulphurea
vssulfur paintbrush
  • Specialized
9.9

A flowering plant with ragged pale yellow flowers in moist mountain meadows

is the common everyday name used when people refer to this plant

Surface Forms

sulfur paintbrush singular
sulfur paintbrushes plural
sulphur paintbrushes plural
sulphur paintbrush singular

Morphology

sulfur + paintbrush

The parts 'sulfur' (a yellow color) and 'paintbrush' (a brush-like tool) together suggest a yellow, brush-shaped thing, so the name transparently signals color and shape. However, understanding that this compound names a plant (common name based on appearance) requires knowing that 'paintbrush' is used metaphorically for certain flowers, so the relation is only partly predictable to a B1 learner.

Etymology

Sulfur paintbrush likely comes from the plant's ragged clusters of pale yellow flowers that look like an artist's brush dipped in sulfur-colored paint. The words sulfur and paintbrush describe the flower's yellow color and brush-like shape, so the name fits the plant today.