tangerine tree

3.3

A small evergreen tree that produces sweet orange fruit like mandarins

noun
/ˈtændʒəˌrin tri/

: naranjo mandarino

The tangerine tree flourished in the warm climate, bearing sweet oranges every summer.

Examples

In the backyard, we have a small tangerine tree that produces delicious fruit.
She planted a new tangerine tree next to the old oak, hoping for a fruitful harvest.
I had my own tangerine tree in Arleta, where we lived for 19 years, and tangerines always remind me of the Feast of St. Nicholas (I don't remember ever having tangerines at any other time of the year when I was growing up).

Blog text (19)

Synonyms

mandarin orange tree

vstangerine tree

3.5

A small tree from Southeast Asia that grows sweet, easy-to-peel orange fruit

is a cultivated variety selected for especially sweet bright orange fruit

Citrus reticulata

vstangerine tree

Specialized

5.8

A small tree that makes sweet mandarin oranges with thin, easy to peel skin

is a cultivated form chosen for especially bright and sweet orange fruit

How Big

tangerine tree

3.3

sapling

16 2.7

seedling

20 2.8

Surface Forms

tangerine tree singular

tangerine trees plural

Morphology

tangerine + tree

The meaning 'a tree that produces tangerines' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'tangerine' (a small citrus fruit) with 'tree' (a perennial plant). This noun+noun compound follows a common compositional pattern found across languages and is non-idiomatic, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily understand it.

Etymology

Tangerine tree gets its name from the fruit tangerine, which was named after Tangier, a city in North Africa, and the word tree. It simply means the tree that grows the sweet, bright orange 'tangerines'.