spirit animal
1
7.0
- noun
- /ˈspɪrɪt ˈænɪməl/
- Literature
:
animal espiritual
- Many people believe that their spirit animal reflects their true nature and personality.
Examples
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For the record (having skimmed the above threads), you probably already know what your spirit animal is—and it might be more than one, depending on the circumstance.
Blog text (14) -
"You know, among my people, Wolf is a spirit animal.
Fiction book (1992) -
What is your spirit animal and what are the what are its characters or powers?
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Training with the shaman, and trying to really connect with my spirit animal.
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I just feel that our spirit animals need more time to get in sync... and find a harmonious bond on the spiritual plane.
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There is very much a tongue-in-cheek aspect to the writing as several of the story levels chronicle a tale strikingly similar to The Lion King, while another set follows a pit bull going on a vision quest to learn from his spirit animal.
Blog text (14) -
In some cultures, your spirit animal is considered a guide that offers wisdom and insight.
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She identified her spirit animal as a horse, which she felt represented her freedom and strength.
Synonyms
1
9.9
A small magical animal that helps a witch or wizard
How Representative
Surface Forms
Morphology
spirit + animal
The phrase combines 'spirit' (essence, character) with 'animal' (creature), so a learner who knows both words can plausibly infer an animal that represents someone's essence or character. However, the modern informal extension (applying to people, objects, songs, moods) and cultural nuances make the exact pragmatic uses and broadened senses not fully predictable to a B1 learner without exposure.
Etymology
Spirit animal comes from old spiritual beliefs where the words spirit and animal named a guiding spirit that could take the form of an animal and show a person's true nature. That's why the phrase means 'an animal that represents a person's character or guides them'.