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Glite Dictionary
moon trefoil

moon trefoil

9.9
A small evergreen bush with soft hairy leaves, yellow summer flowers, and snail-shaped seed pods
  • noun
  • UK
translation icon : trébol de luna
  • Botanists admire the unique snail-shaped pods produced by the moon trefoil.

Examples

  • She planted a moon trefoil to add evergreen foliage and summer flowers to her yard.

  • The moon trefoil blooms beautifully in summer.

  • The garden's rockery was home to a striking moon trefoil in full bloom.

  • I saw a moon trefoil in the garden yesterday.

  • The moon trefoil is known for its downy leaves and bright yellow summer flowers.

  • In her botanical garden, she showcased a beautiful moon trefoil with its unique snail-shaped pods.

  • The landscape architect chose the moon trefoil for its evergreen qualities and summer blooms.

Synonyms

Medicago arborea
vsmoon trefoil
  • Specialized
9.9

An evergreen shrub from southern Europe with soft hairy leaves, bright yellow summer flowers, and snail-shaped seed pods

is the common name for the same shrub rather than the scientific form

Surface Forms

moon trefoil singular
moon trefoils plural

Morphology

moon + trefoil

Trefoil clearly denotes a clover-like plant, and moon functions as a modifier, so a learner who knows both words would reasonably infer this is a kind of trefoil (i.e., a plant) named for some moon-like quality. However, the precise botanical properties in the given definition (evergreen shrub, downy leaves, snail-shaped pods) are not predictable from the constituents, making the expression only partially transparent.

Etymology

Moon trefoil may come from the plant's curled seed pods that look like little moons and from trefoil, which means 'three leaves'. That's why the name now refers to a small evergreen bush with yellow flowers, leaves in groups of three, and moon-like pods.