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Glite Dictionary
Ajaia ajaja

Ajaia ajaja

9.9
A bird with pink feathers that wades in shallow water and has a bill shaped like a spoon
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : Ajaia ajaja
  • The Ajaia ajaja can often be seen wading in shallow waters throughout South and Central America.

Examples

  • The distinctive pink feathers make Ajaia ajaja a favorite among birdwatchers and photographers alike.

  • Due to habitat loss, conservationists closely monitor populations of Ajaia ajaja in the wild.

  • The Ajaia ajaja is often seen wading in shallow waters.

  • Look at that beautiful Ajaia ajaja over there!

  • The Ajaia ajaja can often be seen wading in shallow waters throughout South and Central America.

  • Due to habitat loss, conservationists closely monitor populations of Ajaia ajaja in the wild.

  • The distinctive pink feathers make Ajaia ajaja a favorite among birdwatchers and photographers alike.

Synonyms

roseate spoonbill
vsAjaia ajaja
  • US
1 9.8

A large pink bird with a spoon-shaped bill that stands in shallow water

has identical meaning but is the scientific name used in formal contexts

Surface Forms

Ajaia ajaja singular
Ajaia ajajas plural

Morphology

Ajaia + ajaja

This is a Latin binomial (scientific) name: its parts are a genus name and a specific epithet (one of which is not a dictionary word), so knowing the surface forms does not let a B1 learner infer ‘a tropical American spoonbill’. Scientific names are arbitrary lexical labels rather than compositional English phrases, and their referential meaning is language-specific and must be learned separately.

Etymology

Ajaia ajaja may come from a word used by local people for this bird, and the repeated name makes it easy to remember. The bird has a wide 'spoon-shaped' bill and pink feathers and uses the bill to feed in shallow water, so the name points to this tropical 'spoonbill'.