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Glite Dictionary
blue bull

blue bull

9.1
A large deer-like animal from India whose male has a blue-grey coat and whose female is brown and hornless
  • noun
  • /blu bʌl/
  • Indian
translation icon : nilgai
  • The blue bull is commonly found in the grasslands of northern India.

Examples

  • Male blue bulls have striking blue-grey coats that help them blend into their surroundings.

  • What a magnificent blue bull!

  • We spotted a herd of blue bull grazing near the edge of the forest.

  • Look at that blue bull!

  • While on a safari, we spotted a majestic blue bull grazing peacefully in the sun.

  • The blue bull is known for its unique blue-grey coat, which helps it blend into its natural habitat.

  • During our visit to the wildlife sanctuary, we observed several blue bulls roaming together near the waterhole.

Synonyms

nilgai
vsblue bull
  • Indian
1 9.9

A large antelope from India with blue-grey males and brown hornless females

is the descriptive phrase that focuses on male coat and female hornlessness
Boselaphus tragocamelus
vsblue bull
  • Specialized
9.9

A large antelope from India with blue-grey males and brown females

is the everyday descriptive name noting appearance rather than Latin naming
nylghai
vsblue bull
  • Indian
9.9

A large antelope from India whose males are blue-grey with horns and females are brown without horns

omits male horn detail and focuses on coat colour and female hornlessness

Surface Forms

blue bull singular
blue bulls plural

Morphology

blue + bull

The phrase is a straightforward color + animal compound: a B1 learner who knows 'blue' and 'bull' will infer a bull-like (male) animal with a blue or blue-grey colour. Although 'blue bull' is a species name (nilgai) and taxonomically an antelope rather than a true cattle bull, the naming is compositional and matches common cross-linguistic color+animal patterns, so its basic meaning is transparent.

Etymology

Blue bull comes from the animal's blue-grey coat and from the Hindi word 'nilgai', which means 'blue cow'. Because the male is large and has horns like a bull, English speakers put blue and bull together, so today blue bull is the common name for this animal.