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Glite Dictionary
big brown bat

big brown bat

1 7.1
A large brown bat in North America that eats insects at night
  • noun
  • /bɪg braʊn bæt/
  • Specialized
translation icon : murciélago marrón grande
  • During the summer, a big brown bat can consume up to 1,000 insects in a single night.
  • big brown bat
  • big brown bat (Eptesicus)
  • big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus)

Examples

  • The big brown bat is often seen hunting insects around streetlights at dusk.

  • A big brown bat can eat up to half its body weight in insects in one night.

  • Researchers tracked the migration patterns of the big brown bat using radio transmitters.

  • The big brown bat is known for its size.

  • Did you see a big brown bat last night?

  • The big brown bat is commonly found in various habitats across North America.

  • Many people enjoy watching the big brown bat as it swoops through the air at dusk.

Synonyms

Eptesicus fuscus
vsbig brown bat
  • Specialized
9.9

A large brown bat from North America that eats insects and often lives in attics and barns

is the everyday common name used outside scientific contexts

How Big

flying fox
  • Australian
1 8.2
jackass bat
  • US
9.9
big brown bat
  • Specialized
1 7.1

Surface Forms

big brown bat singular
big brown bats plural

Morphology

big + brown + bat

This is a straightforward descriptive noun phrase: 'big' and 'brown' modify 'bat', yielding 'a large brown bat' which directly matches the given definition. The meaning is fully compositional following common adjective+noun patterns, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words can infer it.

Etymology

Big brown bat is a simple name from how people described the animal: it is a bat that is big and brown, often larger and browner than other local bats. Because the words give a clear picture, the name now refers to this large brown kind of bat.