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Glite Dictionary
kaffir boom

kaffir boom

9.9
A small tree from South Africa with bright orange flowers and red seeds
  • noun
  • Archaic
translation icon : kaffir boom
  • The brightly blooming kaffir boom attracts birds and insects throughout the spring in South Africa.

Examples

  • A row of kaffir booms lines the rural road, their flowers vivid against the dry grass.

  • Farmers often use timber from the kaffir boom for making durable fence posts.

  • The kaffir boom is a stunning addition to any garden.

  • Many gardeners love the kaffir boom for its vibrant colors.

  • The brightly blooming kaffir boom attracts birds and insects throughout the spring in South Africa.

  • A row of kaffir booms lines the rural road, their flowers vivid against the dry grass.

  • Many gardeners love the kaffir boom for its vibrant colors.

Synonyms

Erythrina caffra
vskaffir boom
  • South African
9.9

A small partly evergreen tree from eastern South Africa with bright orange flowers and light wood used for fence posts

focuses on bright flowers and red seeds rather than wood use
Cape kafferboom
vskaffir boom
  • Archaic
9.9

A small South African tree with bright orange flowers and red seeds

emphasizes the bright scarlet or orange flowers and red seeds
Transvaal kafferboom
vskaffir boom
  • Archaic
9.9

A small South African tree with many bright red flowers and red seeds

lists either bright scarlet or orange flowers rather than only scarlet
Erythrina lysistemon
vskaffir boom
  • South African
9.9

A small tree from South Africa with bright red flowers and red seeds

allows orange or scarlet flowers not only dense scarlet clusters

Surface Forms

kaffir boom singular
kaffir booms plural

Morphology

kaffir + boom

Neither constituent is a transparent English word in this sense: 'kaffir' is not a productive English morpheme here (and is an etymologically charged/borrowed term) and 'boom' in English does not mean 'tree' (it is Afrikaans for 'tree'). The phrase is a language-specific common name for a species and thus lexicalized; an average B1 learner who knows the English meanings of the parts would not be able to derive 'a small semi-evergreen tree', so the expression is opaque.

Etymology

Kaffir boom uses an older, now offensive word plus the Afrikaans word boom meaning 'tree'. It was the common name for a small South African tree with bright orange or scarlet flowers and red seeds, so today the name refers to that tree.