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# cactus

«cactus» in Mova's school dictionary: **a plant that grows in hot, dry places such as deserts…** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

### part of speech

noun (a cactus, cacti or cactuses)

### meaning for a pupil

A cactus is a plant that grows in hot, dry places such as deserts, with a thick stem that stores water and usually sharp spines instead of leaves. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/cactus/#m1)

### sense in the lessons

In science lessons cacti show adaptation: thick stems store water, spines protect them and lose less water than leaves, and long roots soak up rare rain. Phrases: «a prickly cactus», «cactus spines», «cactus flower».

### examples

- A cactus can live in the desert for a long time without rain. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/cactus/#x1)
- Don't touch the cactus; it's prickly! [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/cactus/#x2)
- My grandma has a cactus on her windowsill. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/cactus/#x3)
- Some cacti have beautiful flowers. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/cactus/#x4)
- The cactus stores water in its thick stem. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/cactus/#x5)
- Camels can eat some cactus plants. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/cactus/#x6)
- The tall saguaro cactus grows in Arizona. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/cactus/#x7)

### note

Plural: cacti (KAK-tie) or cactuses; both are correct. Myth: drinking water from a cactus is a good idea in the desert — most cactus juice makes you sick. Spines are sharp; handle with gloves.

### In the corpora

- [Cactus spines are leaves turned into spikes that guard the water inside and give a little shade.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/255-plants-deeper-poisonous-and-stinging-plants-and-staying-safe/17/)
- [Look at cacti but do not touch them, because their spines go into skin and are hard to get out.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/everyday/237-plants-that-sting-and-poison/20/)
- [Look at cacti but do not touch them; their spines go into skin and are hard to get out.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/everyday/301-tsunamis-lambs-plants-ants-and-stings/16/)
- [Look at cacti but do not touch them: cactus spines go into skin and are hard to get out.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/everyday/326-rainbows-beach-quakes-lambs-berries-cacti-and-ants/13/)
- [Cacti store water in thick stems and have spines instead of broad leaves.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/world/27-habitats-and-adaptations/10/)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «cactus» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/cactus/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.