Clinton's lily
2
9.9
- noun
- Specialized
:
lirio de Clinton
- In the shaded garden, we discovered several Clinton's lilies blooming with soft purple flowers.
Examples
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The florist recommended planting Clinton's lily for its beautiful appearance and easy care.
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After the rain, the Clinton's lilies stood tall with their leaves glistening in the sunlight.
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We put our daughter in Sidwell-Friends with Clinton's.
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Everything about Obama's swing looks more solid than Clinton's.
Blog text (5) -
Clinton's father died before he was born, and his stepfather was abusive.
Blog text (29) -
America 2000 was never enacted, but it did carve a path for Clinton's Goals 2000 proposal, which supported states' development of standards (NYSED, 2009).
Academic text (2015) -
SC: Since you do so much with women's rights and women's issues, do you mind me asking you about your thoughts on Hillary Clinton's recent announcement?
Academic text (2007) -
Ross did concede, however, that Twi-plomacy can have negative consequences, echoing Secretary Clinton’s statement that, "Information networks are like nuclear power."
Blog text (24)
Synonyms
A forest plant with broad leaves, white or purple flowers, and blue berries
Surface Forms
Morphology
Clinton's + lily
This is a possessive proper-name + noun construction: a B1 learner who knows 'lily' and understands possessive forms will infer it refers to a type or variety of lily associated with someone or something called Clinton. They may not know the botanical genus Clintonia or the specific referent, but the overall meaning as a lily named/linked to Clinton is transparently derivable from the constituents.
Etymology
Clinton's lily may come from the name of an American leader, DeWitt Clinton, whose name botanists used when they first described the plant. So the phrase simply means a lily 'named for' Clinton, which helps you remember it as a plant with broad leaves and blue berries.