lesser whitethroat

9.1

A small brown songbird that lives in Europe and western Asia

noun

: curruca menor

We spotted a lesser whitethroat while birdwatching in the countryside.

Examples

Many birdwatchers enjoy spotting the lesser whitethroat during migration.
The lesser whitethroat is often found in dense bushes.
The lesser whitethroat can often be heard singing in dense shrubs during spring.
Unlike its relative, the greater whitethroat, the lesser whitethroat is more difficult to observe.
The lesser whitethroat can often be heard singing in dense shrubs during spring.
We spotted a lesser whitethroat while birdwatching in the countryside.
Many birdwatchers enjoy spotting the lesser whitethroat during migration.

Synonyms

Sylvia curruca

vslesser whitethroat

Specialized

9.9

A small songbird with a grey head and white throat that lives in bushes across Europe and Asia

means the same but is the common everyday name rather than the scientific form

Surface Forms

lesser whitethroat singular

lesser whitethroats plural

Morphology

lesser + whitethroat

The phrase is a straightforward species name composed of 'lesser' (smaller) + 'whitethroat' (a type of warbler), so a learner who knows both constituents can infer it denotes a smaller/lesser-sized whitethroat species. This comparative naming pattern for related species (e.g. 'greater/lesser') is common cross-linguistically, making the meaning transparently derivable.

Etymology

Lesser whitethroat may come from how the bird looks. Whitethroat points to its pale 'white throat' patch and lesser means the 'smaller' kind compared with the greater whitethroat, so the name tells us it is a small songbird with a pale throat.