bastard ridley
- noun
- /ˈbæstərd ˈrɪdli/
- Specialized
:
tortuga ridley
- Conservationists are working to protect the nesting sites of the bastard ridley along the Gulf coast.
Examples
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It is rare to see a bastard ridley turtle, as their population has drastically declined.
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The bastard ridley is one of the smallest sea turtles.
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The bastard ridley is currently the most endangered sea turtle species in the world.
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Have you ever seen a bastard ridley in the wild?
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Conservationists are working to protect the nesting sites of the bastard ridley along the Gulf coast.
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It is rare to see a bastard ridley turtle, as their population has drastically declined.
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The bastard ridley is currently the most endangered sea turtle species in the world.
Synonyms
A small sea turtle living on North America's Atlantic and Gulf coasts that nests in large groups
A small sea turtle that nests on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of North America
A grey sea turtle that lives on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of North America
Surface Forms
Morphology
This is a conventional common-name for a specific turtle species; the modifier 'bastard' is part of the name rather than a literal descriptor of origin, so the referent (a small grey sea turtle, Kemp's ridley) cannot be reliably inferred from the words 'bastard' + 'ridley'. A B1 learner who knows the constituents would likely be misled or remain uncertain about the zoological sense, so the expression is idiomatic/lexicalized and not compositional.
Etymology
The name bastard ridley may come from fishermen who thought this small grey turtle was a bastard — a 'mixed' or 'different' kind — of ridley because it did not look like other sea turtles. So the name came to be used for that small sea turtle.
