Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
Allium cernuum

Allium cernuum

9.9
A wild onion plant from North America with drooping white or pink flowers
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : cebolla inclinada
  • The Allium cernuum blooms beautifully in spring with clusters of white to rose-colored flowers.

Examples

  • The distinctive drooping flowers of the Allium cernuum attract many pollinators in the summer.

  • Gardeners often plant Allium cernuum for its delicate beauty and resilience in native gardens.

  • The chef used the wild leaves of Allium cernuum to add a mild onion flavor to the dish.

  • I found an Allium cernuum in my garden.

  • The Allium cernuum blooms beautifully in spring.

  • The distinctive drooping flowers of the Allium cernuum attract many pollinators in the summer.

  • Gardeners often plant Allium cernuum for its delicate beauty and resilience in native gardens.

Synonyms

nodding onion
vsAllium cernuum
  • US
8.5

A wild North American plant with a small onion bulb and drooping white or pink flowers

is identical in meaning but uses a different standard name
nodding wild onion
vsAllium cernuum
  • US
8.6

A wild onion plant with drooping white to pink flowers

is the same species but describes flowers as rose rather than pink
rose leek
vsAllium cernuum
  • US
9.6

A plant that grows from a bulb with drooping pink flower clusters

is the same species but uses a different common name

Surface Forms

Allium cernuum singular
Allium cernuums plural

Morphology

Allium + cernuum

This is a Latin binomial: the element 'Allium' clearly signals the onion/garlic genus so a learner who knows that can infer it is a type of Allium (i.e. an onion-like plant). However the second element 'cernuum' is a non-vernacular Latin epithet (dictionary entry missing for learners) and its specific sense (drooping/nodding flowers) is unlikely to be predictable to a B1 learner, so the full meaning is not transparently derivable from the parts.

Etymology

Allium cernuum gets its name from Latin words that describe the plant. Allium means 'onion' and cernuum means 'nodding' or 'drooping', so the name gives the image of an onion-like plant with little flowers that 'hang down', which is why it refers to a wild onion with drooping flower clusters.