shoe black
- noun
:
hibisco
- The garden was filled with blooming shoe black, adding vibrant color to the landscape.
Examples
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She planted a shoe black near the porch to attract butterflies and hummingbirds.
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Have you seen the shoe black blooming in the park?
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In some cultures, shoe black flowers are used in traditional medicine and hair care remedies.
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The garden was filled with vibrant shoe black flowers.
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The garden was filled with blooming shoe black, adding vibrant color to the landscape.
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She planted a shoe black near the porch to attract butterflies and hummingbirds.
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In some cultures, shoe black flowers are used in traditional medicine and hair care remedies.
Synonyms
1
5.5
A tropical plant with large, bright flowers often grown in gardens
A tropical shrub or small tree with large red flowers grown for decoration and often called the China rose
A large tropical shrub with big red flowers grown for its bright blooms
A large shrub or small tree from Asia with big red flowers
A large bush or small tree with bright red flowers grown for gardens
A large shrub or small tree with deep red flowers often grown in gardens
Surface Forms
Morphology
shoe + black
The meaning 'a large, showy Asian shrub (hibiscus)' has no predictable connection to the literal constituents 'shoe' and 'black' — 'shoe' is not even defined here and 'black' only denotes a colour. This is a lexicalized plant name whose sense cannot be derived from the parts, so a B1 learner who only knows the individual words would not infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Shoe black may come from a simple image: people once used the plant's dark flower juice to shine shoes, so the name joined shoe and black. That's why today shoe black refers to a 'shrub' with bright, showy flowers.