Capsella bursa-pastoris
- noun
- Specialized
:
Capsella bursa-pastoris
- Capsella bursa-pastoris produces small, heart-shaped seed pods that are easy to recognize.
Examples
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You can often find Capsella bursa-pastoris growing in disturbed soil along roadsides and fields.
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Many gardeners consider Capsella bursa-pastoris an invasive weed in their flowerbeds.
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The Capsella bursa-pastoris plant is commonly found in fields.
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Have you seen the Capsella bursa-pastoris blooming near the park?
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You can often find Capsella bursa-pastoris growing in disturbed soil along roadsides and fields.
-
Many gardeners consider Capsella bursa-pastoris an invasive weed in their flowerbeds.
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Have you seen the Capsella bursa-pastoris blooming near the park?
Synonyms
A small common weed that has white flowers and heart-shaped seed pods
A small plant that has white flowers and heart-shaped seed pods and often grows as a weed
Surface Forms
Morphology
Capsella + bursa-pastoris
This is a Latin botanical binomial (a scientific name) rather than a compositional English phrase; the second element 'bursa-pastoris' is not a regular English word and is absent from the provided dictionary entry. A B1 learner who knows the genus label 'Capsella' but not the Latin etymology cannot infer the plant meaning from the constituents, so the expression is not transparently compositional.
Etymology
Capsella bursa-pastoris is a scientific name from Latin that paints a simple picture: the plant's flat seed pods look like little purses. The part Capsella means 'small box' and bursa-pastoris means 'shepherd's purse', so the name points to those pouch-like seed pods and helps you remember the plant.
