bog whortleberry
- noun
- UK
:
mora de pantano
- The bog whortleberry thrives in damp, acidic soils found in northern bogs and heaths.
Examples
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Local foragers collect bog whortleberries to make jams and preserves.
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The bog whortleberries are ripe for picking this season.
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Bears are known to feed on the ripe fruit of the bog whortleberry during summer.
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I found a bog whortleberry bush near the lake.
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Bears are known to feed on the ripe fruit of the bog whortleberry during summer.
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Local foragers collect bog whortleberries to make jams and preserves.
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The bog whortleberry thrives in damp, acidic soils found in northern bogs and heaths.
Synonyms
A low evergreen shrub with leathery leaves that grows in bogs and produces small blue-black berries
A small evergreen bush like a blueberry that grows in cold mountain areas
A small shrub that has blue-black berries you can eat
A low bush with small dark blue edible berries
A bush with shiny leaves that stay green all year and dark blue berries
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun is a transparent compound: its meaning (a whortleberry that grows in bogs) is directly and compositionally derived from 'bog' (habitat) + 'whortleberry' (the shrub/berry). This type of noun-forming pattern is literal and widespread across languages, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Bog whortleberry comes from the plant's home and its fruit: bog means wet, soft ground and whortleberry is an old word for small dark berries. So the name explains why today it means 'an evergreen shrub with small edible blue or black berries that grows in bogs'.
