American badger
- noun
- /əˈmɛrɪkən ˈbædʒər/
- US
:
tejón americano
- Unlike its European cousin, the American badger prefers solitary living.
Examples
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The American badger is well adapted to life in open grasslands and prairies.
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The American badger is known for its distinctive stripes.
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Farmers sometimes spot an American badger digging for rodents in their fields.
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Have you ever seen an American badger in the wild?
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The American badger is known for its distinctive white facial markings.
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During the hike, we spotted an American badger digging a burrow in the ground.
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The American badger typically forages for food at night in North America's grasslands.
Synonyms
33
1.4
A strong animal that lives in holes and has black and white face stripes
A mammal from North America that lives in holes in the ground and digs to make them
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a species of badger native to North America' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'American' (of the Americas) with 'badger' (the animal). This compositional, taxonomic naming pattern is common and predictable cross-linguistically, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will understand the MWE.
Etymology
The name American badger comes from joining American, meaning the place, and badger, the digging animal that makes burrows and has a black-and-white face. So it simply means 'a badger from North America'.