milk-vetch

9.9

A small plant with clusters of tiny flowers that often grows in dry, open places

noun
/mɪlk-vɛtʃ/

: vicia lechera

Some species of milk-vetch are important sources of food for insects and livestock.

Examples

The milk-vetch thrives in sandy soils across the western United States.
Botanists collected samples of milk-vetch for their research on native flora.
The milk-vetch blooms beautifully in spring.
Many gardeners love milk-vetches for their vibrant colors.
Some species of milk-vetch are important sources of food for insects and livestock.
The milk-vetch thrives in sandy soils across the western United States.
Botanists collected samples of milk-vetch for their research on native flora.

Synonyms

milk vetch

vsmilk-vetch

9.6

A plant with clusters of pea-like flowers that grows in cool regions

is identical in sense but written as a hyphenated form

Surface Forms

milk-vetch singular

milk-vetches plural

Morphology

milk-vetch = milk + vetch (semi-transparent) = milk + vetch

Formally a straightforward compound of 'milk' + 'vetch', but as a botanical common name referring to a specific genus the exact referent is not fully predictable from everyday senses.

Etymology

Milk-vetch comes from the parts milk and vetch, where vetch means a 'pea-like' plant often used as animal 'feed'. A helpful way to remember it is to think of these pea-family plants, such as Astragalus, that grazing animals eat and that farmers linked with milk, so milk-vetch names those wild plants you find in fields.