Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
crab-eating dog

crab-eating dog

9.4
A wild dog that eats crabs and other water animals
  • noun
  • US
translation icon : perro cangrejero
  • The crab-eating dog hunts along riverbanks in search of its favorite prey.

Examples

  • Unlike domestic dogs, the crab-eating dog is well adapted to wetland environments.

  • Many crab-eating dogs live along the riverbanks.

  • Scientists are studying the diet of the crab-eating dog in the Amazon rainforest.

  • The crab-eating dog is found in the Amazon rainforest.

  • Scientists are studying the diet of the crab-eating dog in the Amazon rainforest.

  • The crab-eating dog hunts along riverbanks in search of its favorite prey.

  • Unlike domestic dogs, the crab-eating dog is well adapted to wetland environments.

Synonyms

crab-eating fox
vscrab-eating dog
  • US
9.4

A wild animal like a small dog from northern South America that eats crabs and small animals

focuses more on eating crabs and other aquatic animals primarily
Dusicyon cancrivorus
vscrab-eating dog
  • Specialized
9.9

A small wild dog from northern and central South America that eats crabs

is the common general term used instead of the scientific name

Surface Forms

crab-eating dog singular
crab-eating dogs plural

Morphology

crab-eating + dog

The compound 'crab-eating' transparently means 'eating crabs' combined with 'dog' yields 'a dog that eats crabs'; the meaning follows straightforward compositional rules. This diet-based modifier pattern is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows 'crab', 'eat/‑eating', and 'dog' can infer the MWE's meaning without prior exposure.

Etymology

The name crab-eating dog comes from people seeing a wild dog eating crabs along rivers. So the name simply joins crab, eating, and dog to mean a wild dog that 'feeds on crabs'.