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Glite Dictionary
prince's pine

prince's pine

9.9
A small evergreen plant with shiny leaves that grows in woodlands
  • noun
  • /ˈprɪnsɪz paɪn/
  • UK
translation icon : pino del príncipe
  • The small, glossy leaves of prince's pine are easy to recognize on a woodland walk.

Examples

  • We spotted a patch of prince's pine growing beneath the shade of the oaks.

  • The prince's pines thrive in shaded areas.

  • Botanists studied the medicinal properties of prince's pine during their forest survey.

  • I found a prince's pine in the forest.

  • The small, glossy leaves of prince's pine are easy to recognize on a woodland walk.

  • We spotted a patch of prince's pine growing beneath the shade of the oaks.

  • The prince's pine thrives in shaded areas of the forest.

Synonyms

pipsissewa
vsprince's pine
  • Specialized
9.9

A low evergreen plant with shiny leaves and small pink or white flowers used in traditional medicine

is a general small evergreen in woodlands and lacks medicinal focus
Chimaphila corymbosa
vsprince's pine
  • Specialized
9.9

A small plant from Europe and Asia with white or pink flowers in a flat cluster

is found across North America and Eurasia and covers broader woodland range
western prince's pine
vsprince's pine
  • UK
9.9

A small plant from Europe and Asia with white or pink flowers in a cluster at the top

is an evergreen woodland plant rather than a herbaceous form

Surface Forms

prince's pine singular
prince's pines plural

Morphology

prince's + pine

The form 'prince's' + 'pine' is compositional and an English B1 learner who knows both words will infer it denotes a plant (an evergreen) associated with or named after a 'prince'. However, the lexicalised name refers to a specific small herbaceous genus (Chimaphila) rather than a true pine tree, so the precise botanical sense and conventional usage are not fully predictable from the constituents.

Etymology

Prince's pine may come from the two parts prince's and pine: the plant's small, upright evergreen look reminded people of a tiny pine tree, and adding prince's made the name sound noble or special because the plant was used in 'medicine', which is why the name now means this small woodland evergreen.