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Glite Dictionary
sea squill

sea squill

9.9
A Mediterranean plant with tall spikes of small white flowers and a bulb used as medicine
  • noun
  • UK
translation icon : escila
  • Traditional remedies often use extracts from the bulb of the sea squill.

Examples

  • The sea squill blooms each year along the Mediterranean coastline.

  • Many gardeners appreciate the dramatic appearance of sea squill in late summer.

  • The sea squill blooms beautifully in the spring.

  • I saw a sea squill in the garden yesterday.

  • Many gardeners appreciate the dramatic appearance of sea squill in late summer.

  • The sea squill blooms each year along the Mediterranean coastline.

  • Traditional remedies often use extracts from the bulb of the sea squill.

Synonyms

squill
vssea squill
1 9.9

A plant that grows from a bulb with narrow leaves and long stems of white, blue or pink flowers

is specific to Mediterranean white-flowered bulbs used medicinally
Urginea maritima
vssea squill
  • Specialized
9.9

A Mediterranean plant with tall stalks, white flower spikes, and a large bulb used in medicine

is the common term for Mediterranean plant with white spikes and medicinal bulb
sea onion
vssea squill
  • UK
9.9

A tall Mediterranean plant with dense white flower spikes and a bulb used in medicine

is a common name for the same plant rather than the scientific name

Surface Forms

sea squill singular
sea squills plural

Morphology

sea + squill

The noun-noun composition 'sea' + 'squill' is directly compositional: it denotes a type of squill associated with the sea (a coastal/mediterranean squill). This modifier+head pattern is very productive in English (cf. seaweed, seahorse), so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would be able to infer the plant meaning.

Etymology

Sea squill is named for what it is: it grows by the sea and is a bulb plant called a squill. People long ago used its bulb in 'medicine', so the name helps you remember both where it grows and its old use.