bitter pea
- noun
- Australian
:
guisante amargo
- The bitter pea is well known for its striking yellow flowers and sharp spines.
Examples
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Seeds from the bitter pea are triangular and distinctive among native shrubs.
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Many gardeners appreciate the bitter pea for its drought resistance in Australian landscapes.
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The bitter pea plant thrives in arid regions.
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I saw a bitter pea flowering in the garden.
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Many gardeners appreciate the bitter pea for its drought resistance in Australian landscapes.
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Seeds from the bitter pea are triangular and distinctive among native shrubs.
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The bitter pea is well known for its striking yellow flowers and sharp spines.
Synonyms
A group of Australian shrubs with small yellow or purple pea-like flowers and short triangular pods
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is a transparent adjective+noun composition: a B1 learner who knows 'bitter' and 'pea' will reasonably infer it denotes a kind of pea/pea-like plant characterized by bitterness. While the precise botanical identity (a spiny shrub of genus Daviesia rather than the garden pea) may be unfamiliar, the basic denotation as a bitter plant is directly derivable from the constituents.
Etymology
Bitter pea may come from the plant's taste and the shape of its seeds: the word bitter describes the sharp taste and pea refers to the small, pea-like seeds. That's why people call these Australian shrubs bitter pea, a name that tells you how they look and taste.
