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Glite Dictionary
square flipper

square flipper

9.9
A medium-sized Arctic seal with whiskers on each side of its nose, also called the bearded seal
  • noun
  • Archaic
translation icon : foca barbuda
  • Researchers studied the whiskers of the square flipper to understand how it senses movement in the water.

Examples

  • The square flipper is often found resting on drifting ice in the Arctic region.

  • Hunters in northern communities sometimes rely on the square flipper as a traditional food source.

  • The square flipper is known for its distinctive whiskers.

  • Many researchers study the square flipper in the Arctic.

  • Hunters in northern communities sometimes rely on the square flipper as a traditional food source.

  • The square flipper is often found resting on drifting ice in the Arctic region.

  • Researchers studied the whiskers of the square flipper to understand how it senses movement in the water.

Synonyms

bearded seal
vssquare flipper
  • US
1 6.8

A medium-sized Arctic animal that lives in the sea with long whiskers used to find food under ice

is an alternative name used instead of the scientific name
Erignathus barbatus
vssquare flipper
  • Specialized
9.9

A bearded seal from Arctic waters with thick whiskers on its face

is the common or vernacular name rather than the scientific label

Surface Forms

square flipper singular
square flippers plural

Morphology

square + flipper

Although 'flipper' signals a swimming animal, the modifier 'square' does not transparently identify the specific species 'bearded seal' and the combination does not yield the conventional name or attributes of that seal. A B1 learner who knows the constituent words might guess a marine creature with a square-shaped fin but would not be able to derive the established meaning, so the expression is essentially lexicalized and unpredictable from its parts.

Etymology

Square flipper comes from what people saw: the seal's wide, flat front feet looked almost square, and those feet are called flippers. So the name gave a clear picture for hunters, and square flipper now means the Arctic 'bearded seal'.