short-billed marsh wren

9.0

A small North American bird with a short bill that lives in wet meadows

noun

: cernícalo de pico corto

The short-billed marsh wren builds its nest low among dense reeds in wet meadows.

Examples

Unlike other wrens, the short-billed marsh wren prefers habitats with tall, sedgy grasses.
Birdwatchers spotted a short-billed marsh wren near the edge of the marsh this spring.
The short-billed marsh wren is often found in wetlands.
I spotted a short-billed marsh wren near the lake.
Birdwatchers spotted a short-billed marsh wren near the edge of the marsh this spring.
The short-billed marsh wren builds its nest low among dense reeds in wet meadows.
Unlike other wrens, the short-billed marsh wren prefers habitats with tall, sedgy grasses.

Synonyms

Cistothorus platensis

vsshort-billed marsh wren

Specialized

9.9

A small brown bird that lives and nests in wet grassy meadows in North America

highlights a notably short bill

Surface Forms

short-billed marsh wren singular

short-billed marsh wrens plural

Morphology

short-billed + marsh + wren

The phrase is a straightforward noun phrase: 'wren' names the bird, 'marsh' locates it in wetland habitat, and 'short-billed' simply describes having a short bill. This compositional adjective + noun pattern is cross-linguistically common and a B1 learner who knows the constituent words can readily infer the meaning.

Etymology

Short-billed marsh wren is a simple name that shows three things: short-billed means it has a small beak, marsh means it lives in wet grassy meadows, and wren is a small brown bird. So the name means 'a small wren with a short bill that lives in the marsh'.