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Nothofagus cunninghamii

Nothofagus cunninghamii

9.9
A large evergreen tree from Tasmania and southeast Australia called myrtle beech
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : Nothofagus cunninghamii
  • The dense forests of Tasmania are dominated by Nothofagus cunninghamii, also known as myrtle beech.

Examples

  • The leaves of Nothofagus cunninghamii are small, glossy, and evergreen, providing year-round foliage.

  • In Tasmania, Nothofagus cunninghamii thrives in cool, moist forests.

  • Researchers studied the growth patterns of Nothofagus cunninghamii to understand Tasmania’s ecosystem.

  • The Nothofagus cunninghamii is a majestic tree.

  • The dense forests of Tasmania are dominated by Nothofagus cunninghamii, also known as myrtle beech.

  • In Tasmania, Nothofagus cunninghamii thrives in cool, moist forests.

  • Researchers studied the growth patterns of Nothofagus cunninghamii to understand Tasmania’s ecosystem.

Synonyms

myrtle beech
vsNothofagus cunninghamii
  • Australian
9.9

A large evergreen tree from Tasmania with dark shiny leaves and wood used for furniture

is the formal botanical name for that same Tasmanian tree

Surface Forms

Morphology

Nothofagus + cunninghamii

This is a Latin binomial: knowing 'Nothofagus' (the southern beech genus) lets a learner infer the phrase names a type of Nothofagus tree, so part of the meaning is compositional. However, the species epithet 'cunninghamii' is a non-lexical Latinized name (not interpretable as an English word) and does not convey attributes like 'large evergreen' or 'myrtle beech', so the full referent cannot be derived by a B1 learner.

Etymology

Nothofagus cunninghamii comes from old Greek words and from the name of a botanist. The first part, nothos + fagus, means 'false beech' because the tree looks like a beech but is different, and cunninghamii honors the plant collector Allan Cunningham, so the name tells us what the tree looks like and who it remembers.