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Glite Dictionary
Bos grunniens

Bos grunniens

9.9
A large ox with long hair that people keep in Tibet and nearby areas for milk, meat, and carrying loads
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : Bos grunniens
  • Milk from Bos grunniens is used to make butter and cheese in Tibetan cuisine.

Examples

  • Domesticated Bos grunniens are often used as pack animals in high-altitude regions.

  • The Bos grunniens is essential to the livelihood of many Tibetan nomads.

  • The Bos grunniens is known for its thick fur.

  • Many farmers in Tibet raise Bos grunniens for their milk.

  • Domesticated Bos grunniens are often used as pack animals in high-altitude regions.

  • Milk from Bos grunniens is used to make butter and cheese in Tibetan cuisine.

  • Many farmers in Tibet raise Bos grunniens for their milk.

Synonyms

yak
vsBos grunniens
13 4.3

A large, long-haired ox from Tibet used for milk and wool

is the scientific name used specifically for the domesticated form

Surface Forms

Bos grunniens singular
Bos grunnienses plural

Morphology

Bos + grunniens

The element 'Bos' signals the cattle genus and thus gives a partial clue that the phrase refers to a bovine species, but 'grunniens' is an obscure Latin epithet (not glossed here) and would not be known to a B1 learner. Scientific binomials rely on Latin taxonomy rather than ordinary compositional meaning, so the specific identification as the domesticated yak is not fully derivable from the parts by an average learner.

Etymology

Bos grunniens comes from old Latin words: Bos means 'ox' and grunniens means 'grunting', so the name literally shows a 'grunting ox'. That's why this scientific name fits the large, long-haired domesticated 'yak' used for milk, meat and as a pack animal, and it helps you remember which animal the name refers to.