shoeblack plant
- noun
- UK
:
planta limpiabotas
- The garden's centerpiece is a shoeblack plant covered in vivid red blossoms.
Examples
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In many tropical countries, the shoeblack plant is commonly grown as an ornamental shrub.
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The shoeblack plant blooms beautifully in spring.
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Grandma brewed tea using dried petals from the shoeblack plant.
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Have you seen a shoeblack plant before?
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In many tropical countries, the shoeblack plant is commonly grown as an ornamental shrub.
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The garden's centerpiece is a shoeblack plant covered in vivid red blossoms.
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The shoeblack plant blooms beautifully in spring.
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 shrub or small tree with big red flowers
A large bush or small tree with bright red flowers grown for gardens
Surface Forms
Morphology
shoeblack + plant
The modifier 'shoeblack' is not a transparent descriptive combination of 'shoe' + 'black' and does not indicate flower colour, size, or habit in an obvious way; it functions as a lexicalized plant name. Because botanical names are often arbitrary or historical, a B1 learner who knows 'shoe', 'black' and 'plant' would not be able to derive 'a large showy shrub with deep red flowers', making the expression unpredictable.
Etymology
Shoeblack plant may come from people who used the plant's dark juice to 'blacken' or 'polish' shoes long ago. So, even though today shoeblack plant usually means a showy shrub with deep red flowers, the old use of its dark dye explains the name.