eared grebe

8.2

A small water bird with yellow feathers near its ears and a black neck

noun
/ɪrd ɡrib/

: zampullín orejudo

I spotted an eared grebe near the lake.

Examples

Birdwatchers often travel to see the eared grebe in its breeding plumage.
During migration, thousands of eared grebes gather in shallow lakes across North America.
The eared grebe is easily identified by its striking yellow auricular feathers.
The eared grebe has striking yellow tufts.
While birdwatching, we were thrilled to catch a glimpse of an eared grebe swimming gracefully on the lake.
The eared grebe is known for its distinctive yellow ear tufts, making it a beautiful sight during migrations.
In spring, photographers flock to the wetlands hoping to photograph the striking eared grebe among the reeds.

Synonyms

black-necked grebe

vseared grebe

9.6

A small water bird with a black neck and bright yellow ear tufts

is an alternative common name used for the same species

Podiceps nigricollis

vseared grebe

Specialized

9.9

A small water bird with a black neck and yellow feathers by its ears

is a common alternative name used instead of the scientific term

Surface Forms

eared grebe singular

eared grebes plural

Morphology

eared + grebe

The phrase is a straightforward adjectival + noun description: 'eared' (bearing ears or earlike tufts) modifies 'grebe' (a kind of bird), so the meaning 'a grebe with ear-like tufts' is directly derivable from the parts. This compositional descriptive pattern is common cross-linguistically and would be understandable to a B1 learner who knows both constituents.

Etymology

Eared grebe gets its name from the bright yellow feather tufts beside the bird's head that look like 'ears', so eared points to those ear-like feathers. That's why the name refers to a small water bird with those yellow 'ear' feathers.