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meadow rue

meadow rue

8.5
A plant with thin divided leaves and small purple or yellow flowers that grows in damp meadows by streams
  • noun
  • /ˈmɛdoʊ ru/
translation icon : ruda de pradera
  • The garden featured many wildflowers, including the striking meadow rue with its divided leaves.
  • purple meadow rue
  • meadow rue and aster
  • meadow rue and nettle

Examples

  • She admired the delicate flowers of the meadow rue as she walked along the stream bank.

  • Some of the state and federally listed rare species found there are the gopher tortoise, pine snake, and Cooley's meadow rue.

    Academic text (2008)
  • In the damp meadow, purple meadow rue blooms vividly among the grasses.

Synonyms

genus Thalictrum
vsmeadow rue
  • Specialized
9.3

A group of meadow plants that live for many years, with small delicate flowers and divided leaves

is the common name focusing on habitat and delicate flowers rather than just taxonomy
Thalictrum
vsmeadow rue
  • Specialized
9.9

A group of flowering plants called meadow rue that live for many years

is the common name emphasising appearance and damp meadow habitat

Surface Forms

meadow rue singular
meadow rues plural

Morphology

meadow + rue

This is a transparent noun–noun compound: 'meadow' specifies the habitat and 'rue' names the plant, so the phrase straightforwardly denotes a rue that grows in meadows. The meaning is compositional and follows a common cross-linguistic pattern for plant names, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Meadow rue may get its name from the plant's look and where it grows: people thought its fine, divided leaves looked like the garden herb rue, but it lived out in a meadow. That's why the name means a 'rue' that grows in a meadow.