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Glite Dictionary
sand lizard

sand lizard

6.2
A small lizard with sandy colour that lives in dry, sandy areas
  • noun
translation icon : lagarto de arena

Examples

  • We will see what happens when sand lizards climb into the Tavors and the IDF tries to get them out.

    Blog text (23)

  • The sand lizard can often be found basking on warm rocks in the desert sun.

  • In the dry dunes, the sand lizard blends perfectly with the sandy environment.

  • Children were excited to spot a sand lizard during their nature walk in the park.

How Big

iguana
  • US
2 3.9
sand lizard
6.2
anole
  • US
1 9.9

Surface Forms

sand lizard singular
sand lizards plural

Morphology

sand + lizard

The meaning is directly compositional: 'sand' modifies 'lizard' to indicate a lizard associated with sandy habitat or coloration, so the sense is inferable from the constituents. This noun+noun compound pattern is common across languages, so a B1 learner who knows 'sand' and 'lizard' would readily understand the phrase.

Etymology

The name sand lizard comes from a simple picture: a lizard that lives on sand and often has a sandy colour. So the name means a lizard 'found in sandy places'.