American watercress
- noun
- /əˈmɛrɪkən ˈwɔːtərˌkrɛs/
- US
:
berro americano
- She added fresh American watercress to her salad for a peppery flavor.
Examples
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The stream bank was covered with lush American watercress thriving in the cool water.
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Have you tried American watercress in your sandwich?
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Researchers studied how American watercress purifies natural spring water in the region.
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I love adding American watercress to my salads.
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She added fresh American watercress to her salad for a peppery flavor.
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I love adding American watercress to my salads for extra taste.
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Have you tried American watercress in your sandwich for a unique twist?
Synonyms
7
2.6
A small leafy plant that grows in water used in salads
A leafy plant that grows in water with a peppery taste, often used in salads
A leafy green plant often called watercress that grows in clean streams and tastes peppery
A leafy water plant with small peppery leaves used in salads
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'an aquatic plant... found or grown in the United States' is directly and compositionally derived from 'American' (connected with the United States) + 'watercress' (a peppery aquatic herb). This simple adjective + noun attribution is cross-linguistically common and immediately predictable for a B1 learner who knows both words.
Etymology
American watercress comes from the plant watercress, whose parts water and cress give a simple picture: a peppery green that grows in water. 'American' shows where it is found, so the name means 'the watercress found in America' and that is why it refers to an aquatic plant with peppery leaves used in salads.