kit fox
1
7.2
- noun
- /kɪt fɑks/
- US
:
zorro kit
- First Solar's Topaz Plan in San Luis Obispo has drawn opposition from environmental groups over the impact on endangered San Joaquin kit foxes.
Examples
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In the following years, conservation efforts focused on protecting the native habitats of the kit fox.
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They will always find something else more important, whether it be because of endangered kit foxes, ancient burial grounds, or simply habitat destruction.
Blog text (2) -
The ranch also supports black bears, bobcats, kit foxes, and gray foxes.
Academic text (2001) -
St. Ed looked at a photograph of three little kit foxes peering through piles of tubing on the Nuclear Test Site, happily showing how the natural environment and nuclear testing could survive together.
Fiction book (1993) -
The kit fox is distinguished by its large ears and pale fur, making it well-adapted to the desert environment.
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While hiking at night, we spotted a kit fox searching for food under the desert shrubs.
Synonyms
78
1.0
A small wild mammal with a pointed nose and bushy tail that hunts small animals
A small gray fox that lives in dry parts of the southwestern United States
Surface Forms
Morphology
The components are compositional — 'kit' (juvenile) + 'fox' suggests a young or small fox, so learners who know the words will likely infer a related meaning. However, 'kit fox' is actually a species name (a small desert fox) rather than simply a juvenile fox, so the exact sense is not fully predictable from the parts.
Etymology
Kit fox comes from kit, an old word meaning 'young' or 'small', and fox, so it literally means a small fox. That's why the name fits this little desert fox with big ears.