tree wallaby

9.0

A small kangaroo-like animal that lives in trees in Australia and New Guinea

noun

Australian

: wallaby arborícola

In the forests of New Guinea, the tree wallaby can often be seen climbing high among the treetops.

Examples

With its long tail for balance, the tree wallaby gracefully maneuvers through the trees.
The tree wallaby uses its strong hind legs to leap between branches in search of leaves to eat.
Our larder was a footlocker of canned goods, which we supplemented with locally bought food such as rice and, occasionally, a cuscus or tree wallaby, brought in by a hunter and cooked over a small fire.

Academic text (2002)

Synonyms

tree kangaroo

vstree wallaby

Australian

1 6.9

An animal like a kangaroo that lives in trees in New Guinea and northern Australia

has the same sense but serves as an alternative common name

Surface Forms

tree wallaby singular

tree wallabies plural

Morphology

tree + wallaby

The compound combines the noun 'tree' with the animal 'wallaby' to denote a wallaby associated with trees; a learner who knows both words can straightforwardly infer an arboreal marsupial. This is a regular, compositional noun-noun compound following cross-linguistically common patterns, so its meaning is transparently derivable from the parts.

Etymology

Tree wallaby is a literal name made from tree and wallaby. It brings to mind a small, kangaroo-like animal hopping and climbing among branches, so it means 'a wallaby that lives in trees'.