family Valerianaceae

9.9

A group of mainly plants with soft stems that have a strong, often unpleasant smell

noun
/ˈfæmɪli ˌvælɪˈreɪniˌeɪsi/

Specialized

: familia Valerianaceae

The characteristic smell of some members of the family Valerianaceae makes them easy to identify.

Examples

Many plants in the family Valerianaceae have a strong odor.
Many traditional medicines use plants found in the family Valerianaceae.
Botanists have reclassified certain species formerly in the family Valerianaceae into different families.
The family Valerianaceae includes many species known for their medicinal properties.
Many traditional medicines use plants found in the family Valerianaceae.
The characteristic smell of some members of the family Valerianaceae makes them easy to identify.
The family Valerianaceae includes many species known for their medicinal properties.

Synonyms

valerian family

vsfamily Valerianaceae

Specialized

9.0

A group of mostly herbs with a strong unpleasant smell

is the formal scientific family name written in Latin

Surface Forms

family Valerianaceae singular

families Valerianaceae plural

Morphology

family + Valerianaceae

This noun phrase is compositionally transparent: 'family' denotes a taxonomic grouping and 'Valerianaceae' is the name of that group, so a learner who knows both constituents can infer it refers to the plant family called Valerianaceae. Although technical, the pattern 'family + taxon name' is regular in biology and cross-linguistically recognizable, so the overall meaning is derivable from the parts.

Etymology

Family Valerianaceae comes from the main genus Valeriana, whose name comes from the old Latin word 'valere' meaning 'to be strong', because people long used these herbs as 'medicine'. So the family name refers to a group of herb plants, many with a strong, often unpleasant smell and a history of use as 'medicine'.