bull terrier
3
3.4
- noun
- /bʊl ˈtɛriər/
:
bull terrier
- "Rosie is a miniature bull terrier." "I thought she was a Boston terrier." "You want to see her papers," I said.
Examples
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Two bull terriers slobbered beside her.
Fiction book (1995) -
I think it's a bull terrier.
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There's one of those Staffordshire bull terriers in the garden.
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"Bull terrier," I said.
Fiction book (2001) -
Bull terriers just love to snack on Chapsticks because they are crunchy on the outside and creamy in the middle.
Blog text (3) -
But to intensify reader interest, I quoted a battle guide as she talked about Sallie, a bull terrier that was the mascot of the 11th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Regiment.
Academic text (2010) -
The bull terrier is known for its muscular build and distinct egg-shaped head, making it easily recognizable.
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My friend has a friendly bull terrier that loves to play fetch at the park.
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At the dog show, the bull terrier won first place due to its strong physique and energetic demeanor.
Synonyms
A strong short-haired dog with an egg-shaped head and muscular body
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound 'bull terrier' is compositionally transparent: it denotes a terrier associated with 'bull' characteristics (i.e., a dog breed with a robust, bull-like build or origin from bulldog × terrier crosses). A B1 learner who knows 'bull' and 'terrier' can infer it is a specific type of dog, since noun-noun breed names follow a common and predictable pattern across languages.
Etymology
Bull terrier gets its name from mixing early 'bulldogs' with small 'terriers'. The parts bull and terrier show this mix, so the name fits a strong, active short-haired dog today.