alder blight
- noun
- Specialized
- After a summer of heavy infestation, several trees died due to persistent alder blight.
Examples
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The forester noticed a severe case of alder blight affecting the young trees along the riverbank.
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Gardeners are encouraged to inspect their alders regularly to prevent alder blight from spreading.
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The alder blight has spread rapidly this season.
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Many gardeners are concerned about alder blight affecting their trees.
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The forester noticed a severe case of alder blight affecting the young trees along the riverbank.
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After a summer of heavy infestation, several trees died due to persistent alder blight.
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Gardeners are encouraged to inspect their alders regularly to prevent alder blight from spreading.
Synonyms
A plant disease that makes leaves and stems die without rotting
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a disease of alder trees' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'alder' (a type of tree) with 'blight' (a plant disease). This straightforward noun compound follows regular compositional patterns and is cross-linguistically predictable, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will understand it.
Etymology
Alder blight comes from the simple image of an alder tree and a severe sickness: alder is the tree and blight means a disease that makes leaves and shoots turn brown or black and die. So, the phrase means 'a disease that damages or kills alder trees'.