lamb succory
- noun
- UK
:
lambsucro
- She identified the plant as lamb succory due to its distinct yellow flowers.
Examples
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The fields were dotted with lamb succory blooming in the early summer light.
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I found some lamb succory growing near the path.
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Botanists noted the spread of lamb succory along the hillside.
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The lamb succory blooms in early spring.
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The fields were dotted with lamb succory blooming in the early summer light.
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She identified the plant as lamb succory due to its distinct yellow flowers.
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I found some lamb succory growing near the path.
Synonyms
A small European herb with tiny yellow flowers
A small group of flowering plants in the daisy family called lamb succory
A small plant with yellow flowers like a dandelion
Surface Forms
Morphology
lamb + succory
The phrase is a noun–noun naming pattern: if a learner knows 'succory' as a plant, they can transparently infer that 'lamb succory' is a particular kind of succory (i.e., a plant). However, 'succory' is an obscure lexeme and 'lamb' does not convey the specific attributes (small, yellow-flowered, European), so the precise referent and details are not fully predictable from the parts.
Etymology
Lamb succory may come from farmers who saw young sheep eating the little herb in dry fields. That image of a lamb with the small succory plant helps explain the name, so it points to a 'small field herb' you often find where lambs graze.
