western crab apple
- noun
- US
- In spring, the western crab apple produces clusters of beautiful, fragrant pink blossoms.
Examples
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The western crab apple grows abundantly along the coastal forests of Oregon and Washington.
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Wildlife often feed on the tart fruit of the western crab apple during autumn.
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The western crab apple blooms beautifully in spring.
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Many gardeners love the western crab apple for its fragrance.
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In spring, the western crab apple produces clusters of beautiful, fragrant pink blossoms.
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Wildlife often feed on the tart fruit of the western crab apple during autumn.
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The western crab apple grows abundantly along the coastal forests of Oregon and Washington.
Synonyms
1
9.5
A wild crab apple tree with fragrant pink flowers
1
9.8
A wild crab apple tree from the western United States with fragrant pink flowers
1
9.9
A small wild apple tree with fragrant pink spring flowers
A small wild apple tree that grows in the western United States and has fragrant pink flowers
Surface Forms
Morphology
The modifier 'western' is fully transparent (meaning from the western region), but the core noun 'crab apple' is a partly lexicalized compound: its meaning ‘a small/wild or sour apple’ is not straightforwardly derived from the animal sense of 'crab' for many learners. Because one constituent is transparent while the compound as a whole may require prior exposure to recover the botanical sense, this is best classified as semi-transparent.
Etymology
Western crab apple names a wild, small apple tree from the western United States. The word crab in the name means a small, sour 'apple' and western shows where it grows, so the name helps you picture a tart wild apple with fragrant pink flowers.