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Glite Dictionary
pineapple family

pineapple family

5.3
A group of tropical plants that includes the pineapple and other similar plants
  • noun
  • /ˈpaɪnˌæpəl ˈfæmɪli/
  • Specialized
translation icon : familia de las piñas
  • The pineapple family includes various plants, such as the pineapple and its close relatives.

Examples

  • A third major group of epiphytes is bromeliads, or members of the pineapple family.

    Academic text (1991)

  • Among the obstacles to hiking through the forest are penguin plants, members of the pineapple family that grow in dense thickets.

    Academic text (1995)

  • Plants in the pineapple family are known for their unique fruit and ornamental value.

  • Many species belonging to the pineapple family are cultivated for their economic importance.

Synonyms

Bromeliaceae
vspineapple family
  • Specialized
9.9

A family of tropical American plants that includes pineapple and many plants grown for decoration

focuses on species valued for commercial uses and food production

Surface Forms

pineapple family singular
pineapple families plural

Morphology

pineapple + family

The phrase is fully compositional: 'pineapple' names the plant and 'family' denotes a group/taxonomic category, so 'pineapple family' straightforwardly means the family containing pineapples and related species. This noun + noun grouping pattern is common cross-linguistically and would be immediately inferable by a B1 learner who knows both constituents.

Etymology

Pineapple family is named after the fruit pineapple because the first Europeans who saw the fruit thought it looked like a 'pine cone' and called it a pineapple. So pineapple family simply means the group of plants related to that fruit, including the familiar pineapple and its close relatives.