Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
running postman

running postman

9.9
A trailing vine with bright red flowers that grows along the ground
  • noun
  • Australian
translation icon : correos en flor
  • We noticed a beautiful running postman vine trailing along the bush track.

Examples

  • The running postman adds a splash of red to the native Australian garden.

  • Botanists are studying the growth patterns of the running postman in sandy soils.

  • The running postman is a beautiful plant.

  • I saw a running postman in my neighbor's garden.

  • The running postman vine is known for its vibrant scarlet-pink flowers that attract many insects.

  • In spring, the running postman displays stunning blooms, making it a favorite among gardeners in Australia.

  • Many landscapers recommend using the running postman to add color to dry, sandy areas in native gardens.

Synonyms

scarlet runner
vsrunning postman
  • Australian
9.9

A low-growing Australian vine with hairy stems and bright red and pink flowers

is the identical plant but called by a different name
Kennedia prostrata
vsrunning postman
  • Specialized
9.9

A low trailing vine with hairy stems and bright red flowers from Western Australia

is the identical plant but expressed as a scientific name

Surface Forms

running postman singular
running postmen plural

Morphology

running + postman

The sense 'a hairy, trailing vine' cannot be predicted from the constituents 'running' (moving/flowing) and 'postman' (mail carrier or unattested here); there is no compositional pattern that maps those literal meanings onto a plant name. Although 'running' can metaphorically describe a trailing growth habit, the pairing with 'postman' is arbitrary and lexically idiosyncratic (plant common names are often language-specific), so a B1 learner would not reliably infer the MWE meaning.

Etymology

Running postman may come from the way its bright red flowers run in a line along a long stem that trails across the ground, like a postman running down a road carrying letters. So, the name helps you remember a low vine with bright flowers that look like little red 'packages' moving along the stem.