alligator grass

8.3

A fast-growing water plant with long grass-like leaves that forms thick floating mats

noun
/ˈælɪˌɡeɪtər ɡræs/

: hierba de caimán

Dense mats of alligator grass can block sunlight, harming aquatic life beneath.

Examples

The removal of alligator grass is essential to keep waterway traffic moving smoothly.
Farmers are concerned about alligator grass spreading rapidly in irrigation canals.
The alligator grass spread rapidly across the pond.
Have you seen the alligator grass in the river?
Dense mats of alligator grass can block sunlight, harming aquatic life beneath.
Farmers are concerned about alligator grass spreading rapidly in irrigation canals.
The removal of alligator grass is essential to keep waterway traffic moving smoothly.

Synonyms

alligator weed

vsalligator grass

9.9

An aquatic plant from South America with long grasslike leaves that forms thick floating mats and clogs waterways

grows faster and creates floating mats more quickly

Alternanthera philoxeroides

vsalligator grass

Specialized

9.9

A fast growing South American water plant that forms thick mats and clogs waterways

uses a neutral plant term instead of negative wording

How Invasive

water hyacinth

7.1

alligator grass

8.3

Canadian pondweed

8.1

cattail

5 4.2

Surface Forms

alligator grass singular

alligator grasses plural

Morphology

alligator + grass

The noun 'grass' clearly marks this as a plant and 'alligator' functions as a modifier indicating a type or association (e.g., grass related to or found near alligators). A B1 learner who knows both words can therefore infer that 'alligator grass' is a kind of grass, even if the precise ecological details (fast‑growing, aquatic) are not predictable from the parts alone.

Etymology

Alligator grass may come from a simple image: when this grass grows it forms thick floating mats that look like the rough back of an alligator lying in the water. That's why the name helps you remember it is a water plant that 'clogs' or 'blocks' waterways.