weeds

Everyday

1. Weeds are wild plants that grow where people do not want them, such as in gardens, lawns or fields, and take light, water and space from the plants people want. tree →
2. «Weeds» is the he/she form of the verb «weed»: «she weeds the garden» means she pulls out the weeds. tree →
3. Water weeds or seaweeds are plants that grow in water. tree →

In the lessons

In science lessons pupils learn that weeds compete with crops for light, water and nutrients, and that one gardener's weed (a dandelion, clover) is food for bees and other wildlife. In everyday life children help «pull up weeds» or «do the weeding». Phrases: «pull up the weeds», «overgrown with weeds», «weed out» (remove the bad ones).

Examples

• The garden is full of weeds. tree →
• We pulled up the weeds from the vegetable patch. tree →
• Dandelions are weeds, but bees love them. tree →
• Weeds grew between the paving stones. tree →
• Grandpa weeds his garden every Saturday. tree →
• The pond is choked with weeds. tree →
• Weeds take water from the plants we want. tree →
• It was in a corner that he lay, among weeds and nettles. tree →

Note

Singular: weed. «Weed out» = remove unwanted things («weed out the mistakes»). «Weed» is also slang for cannabis, a drug — a different meaning. A weed is not a special kind of plant — it is any plant in the wrong place.

In Jewish tradition

Wild plants nobody wants. In Job, "noisome weeds" are what grows in place of barley as a curse, and in Jonah weeds means seaweed wrapped around his head in the deep.

Interpretation. Job's words are read as a oath that he would accept a curse if he had done wrong. Jonah's seaweed is read as a picture of being near death before God saved him.

Examples

• Although there is an exuberance of weeds, we will find, nevertheless, many germs of truisms, which are of the greatest importance. (Sefer Yetzirah, Kalisch 1877) tree →
• Let thistles grow instead of wheat, and noisome weeds instead of barley. (Writings JOB.31.40, JPS 1917) tree →
• The waters compassed me about, even to the soul; the deep was round about me; the weeds were wrapped about my head. (Prophets JON.2.6, JPS 1917) tree →

Note

Singular: weed. «Weed out» = remove unwanted things («weed out the mistakes»). «Weed» is also slang for cannabis, a drug — a different meaning. A weed is not a special kind of plant — it is any plant in the wrong place.