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Glite Dictionary
🗣️ A gossip 🐦 A shorebird
tattler

tattler

9.9
A long-legged shorebird with loud whistling calls
  • noun
  • /ˈtætlər/
translation icon : playero
  • The tattler flew over the marshes at sunset.

Examples

  • At the shore, a tattler spotted along the coast caught my attention with its loud whistling call.

  • Have you seen a tattler near the beach?

  • A loud call from the tattler echoed over the tidal flats at dawn.

  • Some birdwatchers travel great distances to catch a glimpse of a grey-tailed tattler.

  • The tattler is often seen along muddy shorelines searching for small invertebrates.

  • On a birdwatching trip, we saw a tattler standing gracefully on its long legs near the water's edge.

  • The tattler flew overhead, its distinctive cry echoing across the beach as it searched for food.

Compounds

Polynesian tattler
  • Specialized
9.9

A small wading bird that migrates to Pacific coasts

Surface Forms

tattler singular
tattlers plural

Morphology

tattler = tattle (opaque) = tattle + er

Although morphologically built from 'tattle' + '-er', the bird name is a specialized taxonomic/onomatopoeic label and not derivable by learners as 'person who tattles'.

Etymology

Tattler (bird) comes from the verb tattle, which means 'to chatter' or 'talk a lot', because this shorebird makes loud, whistling calls that sound like constant talking. So the bird is called a tattler because of its noisy, 'talking' sound.