Amorphophallus titanum
- noun
- /əˌmɔrfoʊˈfæləs taɪˈtænəm/
- Specialized
:
Amorphophallus titanum
- The Amorphophallus titanum, known for its foul odor, can be found in the rainforests of Sumatra.
Examples
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Because the Amorphophallus titanum smells like rotting meat, it is often called the 'corpse flower'.
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It takes several years for an Amorphophallus titanum to produce its enormous and rare blossom.
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The Amorphophallus titanum attracted thousands of visitors when it bloomed at the botanical garden.
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The Amorphophallus titanum bloomed in the botanical garden last week.
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Have you ever seen an Amorphophallus titanum in person?
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Visitors flocked to see the Amorphophallus titanum because of its unique scent that resembles decaying flesh.
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In the wild, the Amorphophallus titanum can grow over ten feet tall and is famous for its spectacular flower.
Synonyms
A very large tropical plant with a huge flower that smells like rotten meat when it blooms
A large tropical plant with a very bad smell and a huge flower like a morning glory
How Smelly
- Specialized
- Specialized
1
9.9
- Specialized
- US
1
8.9
Surface Forms
Morphology
amorphophallus + titanum
This is a scientific Latin binomial rather than a standard English collocation, so its full meaning (a very large, foul‑smelling flowering plant) is not compositionally derived from ordinary English words. Even if a learner recognised 'titanum' as suggesting largeness, the species‑specific traits (the enormous inflorescence and rotting‑flesh odor) are unpredictable from the parts, making it non‑transparent to a B1 learner.
Etymology
Amorphophallus titanum gets its name from two images: the part phallus suggests a long, strange central stalk and titanum points to its very large size. It also gives off a strong smell like 'rotting flesh', so people call it the 'corpse flower', a clear image that explains the plant's name and why we think of it as a huge, foul-smelling bloom.