Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
white-breasted nuthatch

white-breasted nuthatch

7.2
A small blue-grey bird with a black cap and white chest that climbs trees
  • noun
  • /ˈwaɪtˌbrɛstɪd ˈnʌθˌhætʃ/
  • US
translation icon : trepador de pecho blanco
  • The white-breasted nuthatch is often seen foraging for insects along tree trunks.

Examples

  • We watched a white-breasted nuthatch climbing headfirst down the oak tree in the garden.

  • The white-breasted nuthatch is a common sight in my backyard.

  • A pair of white-breasted nuthatches built their nest in the old woodpecker hole.

  • I spotted a white-breasted nuthatch while hiking in the forest.

  • The white-breasted nuthatch is known for its ability to climb down trees headfirst.

  • While watching the bird feeder, I spotted a white-breasted nuthatch eating sunflower seeds.

  • One morning, a white-breasted nuthatch was chirping cheerfully among the branches of the oak tree.

Surface Forms

white-breasted nuthatch singular
white-breasted nuthatches plural

Morphology

white-breasted + nuthatch

The adjective 'white-breasted' is transparently built from 'white' + 'breast' + adjectival -ed meaning 'having a white breast', and 'nuthatch' names a type of bird; together they denote a nuthatch with a white breast. This simple adjective+noun compositional pattern follows common English phraseology and would be understandable to a B1 learner who knows the constituent words.

Etymology

White-breasted nuthatch comes from two simple images: white-breasted for its white chest and nut + hatch for the way the bird sticks nuts into tree bark and pecks them open. That's why the name tells you both what the bird looks like and what it does.