Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
banana quit

banana quit

9.9
A small tropical bird with a curved bill that drinks nectar from flowers
  • noun
  • /bəˈnænə kwɪt/
  • US
translation icon : bananaquit
  • We spotted a colorful banana quit drinking nectar from hibiscus blossoms.

Examples

  • The banana quit is often seen flitting among the flowers in Caribbean gardens.

  • A banana quit built its nest near our porch last spring.

  • I saw a beautiful banana quit in the garden.

  • Have you ever spotted a banana quit before?

  • The banana quit is often seen flitting among the flowers in Caribbean gardens.

  • A banana quit built its nest near our porch last spring.

  • We spotted a colorful banana quit drinking nectar from hibiscus blossoms.

Surface Forms

banana quit singular
banana quits plural

Morphology

banana + quit

Knowing 'banana' gives a clue to a tropical/fruity association, but 'quit' (as in 'stop') has no obvious relation to a bird; the overall meaning 'a small tropical honeycreeper' cannot be derived from the constituents. Because one constituent is informative while the other is unpredictable, a B1 learner might guess a tropical association but would not reliably infer that it names a specific bird species.

Etymology

Banana quit may come from what people saw and heard: the small bird often feeds on banana plants and flowers, and its quick, high call sounded like 'quit' to island people. So this picture helps explain why the name is used for a tiny nectar- and fruit-eating bird.