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Glite Dictionary
sparrowlike

sparrowlike

5.1
Like a small brown bird that hops and looks lively
  • adjective
  • /ˈspɛroʊˌlaɪk/
translation icon : parecido a un gorrión
  • He had a sparrowlike demeanor, always busy yet charmingly innocent in his interactions with others.

Examples

  • The artist captured her sparrowlike features in the portrait, emphasizing her petite frame and delicate expressions.

  • When northern Europeans first settled on the East Coast and the Spanish colonized the Southwest, these sparrowlike birds ranged from Oregon and Wyoming to southern Mexico and east to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.

    Academic text (2002)

  • Then, with solemn stupidity, or sparrowlike and mischievously, I try to think in conventional, general patterns: Death is the real case that offends fantasy.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • Her sparrowlike movements as she flitted from one flower to another reminded me of the small birds in my garden.

Synonyms

birdlike
vssparrowlike
3 3.2

Like a bird in how it looks, moves, or sounds

is narrower, referring to traits of a small common feathered animal
birdy
vssparrowlike
1 6.8

Like a bird in how it looks, sounds, or moves

is more specific, meaning like a small common feathered animal

Surface Forms

sparrowlike positive

Morphology

sparrowlike = sparrow (transparent) = sparrow + like

Productive adjectival formation from the noun 'sparrow' plus '-like', meaning 'resembling a sparrow', which is directly inferable by learners.

Etymology

The word sparrowlike joins the bird sparrow, a 'small bird', with the ending -like meaning 'similar to'. So sparrowlike means 'similar to a sparrow' and helps you picture something small, quick, and lively.