sleepy dick
- noun
- UK
:
dormilón
- Gardeners sometimes cultivate sleepy dick for its pretty, star-shaped blossoms.
Examples
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The field was dotted with clusters of sleepy dick, their white flowers standing out among the grass.
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The sleepy dick blooms beautifully in spring.
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Sleepy dick often blooms in late spring, adding a delicate touch to gardens and meadows.
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I found a sleepy dick in my garden.
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Sleepy dick often blooms in late spring, adding a delicate touch to gardens and meadows.
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Gardeners sometimes cultivate sleepy dick for its pretty, star-shaped blossoms.
-
The field was dotted with clusters of sleepy dick, their white flowers standing out among the grass.
Synonyms
1
8.6
A small plant with narrow leaves and white flowers that look like stars
A small plant with narrow grass-like leaves and white star-shaped flowers with a green stripe
Surface Forms
Morphology
sleepy + dick
This is a lexicalized folk name for a specific plant (Ornithogalum umbellatum) whose meaning as a herb/flower cannot be predicted from the parts 'sleepy' and 'dick'. Knowing 'sleepy' (tired) and 'dick' (a name/slang) does not lead a B1 learner to infer a species of plant, so the compound is idiomatic and non-compositional. Because the constituents give no reliable cue to the botanical sense, the expression is opaque.
Etymology
Sleepy dick may come from the way the plant's white flowers close at night, as if they are sleepy. The parts sleepy and dick paint a picture of a small sleepy thing, so people used that name for this plant that 'sleeps' every evening.