mother-in-law plant
- noun
- /ˈmʌðər ɪn lɔː plænt/
:
planta de la suegra
- The leaves of the mother-in-law plant are beautiful but can be harmful if eaten.
Examples
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She placed a mother-in-law plant in the corner to liven up the living room.
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The mother-in-law plant is popular for indoor decoration.
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Gardeners often choose the mother-in-law plant for its resilience and striking foliage.
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I bought a mother-in-law plant for my living room.
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The leaves of the mother-in-law plant are beautiful but can be harmful if eaten.
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Gardeners often choose the mother-in-law plant for its resilience and striking foliage.
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She placed a mother-in-law plant in the corner to liven up the living room.
Synonyms
A large tropical house plant with green leaves that can cause tongue and throat swelling when touched or eaten
A common houseplant with large green leaves that can make your mouth and throat swell if eaten
A common houseplant with long, stiff leaves that grow upright
A houseplant with long, stiff leaves that grow upright
A houseplant with long upright thick leaves often called snake plant
Antonyms
Surface Forms
Morphology
mother-in-law + plant
This is a conventionalized plant name whose specific referent and properties (evergreen, large dark leaves, toxic causing tongue/throat swelling) are not predictable from the constituents. A B1 learner who knows 'mother-in-law' and 'plant' would at best infer a plant associated with a mother-in-law, not the particular species or its toxic/ornamental characteristics, so the expression is idiomatic and non-compositional.
Etymology
Mother-in-law plant may come from the older name mother-in-law's tongue, because its long, pointed leaves look like a 'sharp tongue'. One popular story says this image warned people that the plant can be 'poisonous' and make the tongue and throat swell if eaten, so the name helps you remember the plant and its danger.