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Glite Dictionary
beach heather

beach heather

8.6
A small plant with fine white hairs that grows on sandy beaches in northeastern North America
  • noun
  • US
translation icon : brezo de playa
  • The delicate white down on beach heather helps protect it from harsh coastal winds.

Examples

  • The beach heather blooms beautifully in the summer.

  • Beach heather can often be found growing along the sandy shores of Cape Cod.

  • Conservationists are monitoring populations of beach heather due to habitat loss.

  • Many beach heathers grow along the shore.

  • During our walk along the shore, we spotted clusters of beach heather thriving in the sandy soil.

  • The beach heather was in full bloom, adding a lovely touch of white to the coastal landscape.

  • In northeastern North America, beach heather can often be seen growing between the dunes and the ocean.

Synonyms

Hudsonia tomentosa
vsbeach heather
  • Specialized
9.9

Small plant with soft white hairs that grows on sandy beaches in northeastern North America

is the common regional name used instead of the formal label
poverty grass
vsbeach heather
  • US
9.9

A small plant that grows on sandy dunes near the sea with pale, fuzzy leaves

is the general descriptive phrase rather than a regional common name

Surface Forms

beach heather singular
beach heathers plural

Morphology

beach + heather

The meaning is directly compositional: 'beach' (shore) modifies 'heather' (a type of shrub), so a B1 learner who knows both words will infer it denotes a variety of heather that grows on beaches. Noun–noun compounding with a location modifier is a common and transparent pattern cross-linguistically, making the sense readily predictable from the constituents.

Etymology

Beach heather is named for where it grows and what it is: beach because it lives on sandy shores, and heather because it is a small plant with white down that helps protect it from strong wind. So the name simply means a small, fuzzy plant that 'grows on beaches'.