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Glite Dictionary
big-cone spruce

big-cone spruce

8.0
A tree from California with very large cones four to eight inches long
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : pícea de cono grande
  • The big-cone spruce is easily recognized by its unusually large and distinctive cones.

Examples

  • Hikers in southern California often spot big-cone spruce along dry, rocky slopes.

  • Botanists study the big-cone spruce to better understand its adaptation to local wildfires.

  • The big-cone spruce is a majestic tree.

  • Many big-cone spruces can be found in California.

  • Hikers in southern California often spot big-cone spruce along dry, rocky slopes.

  • The big-cone spruce is easily recognized by its unusually large and distinctive cones.

  • Botanists study the big-cone spruce to better understand its adaptation to local wildfires.

Surface Forms

big-cone spruce singular
big-cone spruces plural

Morphology

big-cone + spruce

This is a straightforward descriptive compound: 'big-cone' (big + cone) modifies 'spruce', so the phrase denotes a spruce tree that has large cones. The meaning is transparently compositional and follows common adjective-noun compounding patterns, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents would readily understand it.

Etymology

Big-cone spruce is a simple name from what people first noticed: the tree has very large cones, an obvious big cone on a spruce. So today the name means 'a spruce tree with unusually large cones'.