gamboge tree
- noun
- The gamboge tree is prized for its resin, which artists use to create vibrant yellow pigments.
Examples
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Several gamboge trees grow near the village, their trunks exuding the distinctive orange gum.
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The gamboge tree is native to Indonesia.
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Harvesting resin from the gamboge tree is a traditional practice in parts of Indonesia.
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Many artists prefer using the pigment from the gamboge tree.
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Harvesting resin from the gamboge tree is a traditional practice in parts of Indonesia.
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Several gamboge trees grow near the village, their trunks exuding the distinctive orange gum.
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The gamboge tree is cherished for producing a unique resin used in vibrant yellow pigments.
Synonyms
1
9.5
A tropical tree from Indonesia that makes an orange-brown gum used as a paint pigment
A low tree from Indonesia that makes an orange-brown gum used to make paint
A low spreading tree from Indonesia that makes an orange brown gum used for yellow pigment
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is a straightforward modifier+noun composition: 'gamboge' names a resin and 'tree' names a plant, so the phrase denotes a tree that produces gamboge gum. This is a regular, cross-linguistically common compositional pattern, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can readily infer the meaning.
Etymology
Gamboge tree comes from the bright orange gum the tree produces. When people cut the trunk the tree 'bleeds' a sticky orange gum called gamboge, and because artists used it as a strong yellow 'color', the tree became known by that gum's name.