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woodruff

woodruff

117 9.5
A small woodland plant with white flowers and a sweet smell
  • noun
  • /ˈwʊdrəf/
translation icon : aspérula olorosa
  • Many gardeners appreciate woodruff for its delicate white flowers that bloom in the spring.

You could also do a Sylvie and hostas and lung wart and you could do sweet Woodruff and lamium.

Examples

  • Winsom ministered to him, bringing him an egg beaten in brandy and possets of sweet woodruff.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • You could also do a Sylvie and hostas and lung wart and you could do sweet Woodruff and lamium.

  • That's a really pleasing blend of plants to me, and down in here it's just kind of a jumble of violas and sweet Woodruff and hellebores.

  • Sweet woodruff is often used in teas for its pleasant aroma and flavor.

  • In her garden, she planted woodruff alongside other herbs to enhance the landscape.

Synonyms

sweet woodruff
vswoodruff
7.9

A low plant with small white flowers and a sweet smell used to cover the ground and flavor drinks

is a broader woodland plant term that includes this specific species
Galium odoratum
vswoodruff
  • Specialized
9.9

A small plant that grows near the ground with white flowers that smell sweet

is a general name for similar fragrant woodland plants
Asperula odorata
vswoodruff
  • Specialized
9.9

A fragrant ground cover plant with white flowers that people use to flavor wine or scent clothes

is the common woodland plant category that includes this species
waldmeister
vswoodruff
  • UK
9.9

A small green plant with a sweet smell often used to flavor drinks and as a ground cover

is the wider name for fragrant woodland plants including this herb
fragrant bedstraw
vswoodruff
  • UK
9.5

A low plant with small white flowers that smells sweet and is used to scent clothes or cover the ground

is the specific garden and flavor use term among related species
Asperula
vswoodruff
  • Specialized
9.9

A low plant that grows in woods and has small white flowers that smell sweet

is the common species-level name rather than the whole genus
dyer's woodruff
vswoodruff
  • UK
9.9

A low European plant with red roots used to make red dye for cloth

is a different species that is used for dyeing rather than for flavor

Compounds

A low European plant with red roots used to make red dye for cloth

A low plant with small white flowers and a sweet smell used to cover the ground and flavor drinks

Surface Forms

woodruff singular
woodruffs plural

Morphology

woodruff = wood + rue (semi-transparent) = wood + ruff

The first element 'wood' clearly signals a woodland association, but the second element appears as 'ruff' (a historical variant of 'rue'), which is visually nontransparent and may be unfamiliar to learners.

Etymology

Woodruff comes from wood ('forest') and ruff ('small clump of plants'), so it literally means a sweet-smelling little plant that grows in the woods.