ditch reed
- noun
- /dɪtʃ rid/
- Specialized
:
carrizo
- Native Americans often fashioned arrow shafts from ditch reed because of its strength and straightness.
Examples
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The local artisans wove baskets using ditch reed collected from the wetland.
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Many birds nest in the ditch reed during spring.
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After the flood, the banks were filled with tall ditch reed swaying gently in the breeze.
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The ditch reed grows near the riverbank.
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Native Americans often fashioned arrow shafts from ditch reed because of its strength and straightness.
-
The local artisans wove baskets using ditch reed collected from the wetland.
-
After the flood, the banks were filled with tall ditch reed swaying gently in the breeze.
Synonyms
29
1.9
A tall grass with hollow stems that grows near water
1
9.9
A tall reed with broad leaves and feathery flowers used to make mats and arrow shafts
A tall reed with broad leaves and feathery flower heads that grows in wetlands
A tall grass with feathery flower heads that grows by lakes and rivers
A very tall grass with jointed stems and feathery white flower clusters near rivers
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound denotes a reed associated with a ditch and its meaning ('a reed growing in or near a ditch') is directly derivable from the constituents 'ditch' (water channel) + 'reed' (tall marsh plant). This noun–noun compositional pattern is common and cross-linguistically transparent, so a B1 learner who knows both words should understand the MWE.
Etymology
Ditch reed comes from a simple picture: a tall reed that grows in a ditch or other wet place. People used its straight, strong stems to make mats, screens, and arrow shafts, so the name now means 'a tall wetland plant'.