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Glite Dictionary
greater scaup

greater scaup

8.4
A large North American diving duck whose male has a greenish head
  • noun
  • /ˈɡreɪtər skaʊp/
  • Specialized
translation icon : pato buceador mayor
  • Unlike the lesser scaup, the greater scaup prefers larger bodies of open water.

Examples

  • The greater scaup is often seen in large flocks on coastal bays during winter.

  • Male greater scaup can be identified by the greenish gloss on their heads.

  • Look! A greater scaup just landed on the water!

  • The greater scaup is often found in large flocks.

  • The birdwatcher was thrilled to spot a male greater scaup swimming gracefully in the lake.

  • During the hunting season, many hunters aim to catch a greater scaup due to its distinctive greenish head.

  • While observing the wetlands, we identified several greater scaup diving for food among the reeds.

Synonyms

lake duck
vsgreater scaup
  • US
1 7.4

A diving duck with a purplish head often seen in lakes

describes the same duck but notes a greenish iridescent male head instead
Aythya marila
vsgreater scaup
  • Specialized
9.9

A large diving duck found in North America and northern Eurasia whose males have a greenish shine on their heads

has identical meaning and is the common English name for that species

Surface Forms

greater scaup singular
greater scaups plural

Morphology

greater + scaup

The meaning is directly compositional: 'greater' simply qualifies 'scaup' to indicate a larger species or individual of that diving duck. If a learner knows 'scaup' = a diving duck and 'greater' = larger, the combined meaning is immediately derivable, following a common adjective + noun pattern found across languages.

Etymology

Greater scaup may come from an old Scottish word for 'shell' or 'oyster', because these ducks dive for shellfish in shallow water, so scaup links to what they eat. The word greater simply means 'larger', so the full name points to the bigger scaup species that feeds on shells.