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canvasback

canvasback

1 8.8
A large North American duck with a red head often hunted for food
  • noun
  • /ˈkænvəsˌbæk/
  • US
translation icon : pato de cabeza roja
  • During the winter, canvasbacks can often be seen swimming in the icy waters of the northern lakes.
  • canvasback season
  • canvasback populations

Examples

  • Our table stood in sand, and our canvasback chairs sank into four different tilts.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • Can you tell a canvasback from a widgeon from the way it turns in the air, from how it feeds?

  • And I did see my first flock of canvasbacks last weekend.

    Blog text (10)
  • Killed some bluebills and canvasbacks yesterday.

    Blog text (10)
  • Canvasback!

  • Canvasback!

  • Widgeons, canvasbacks, Donalds, Daffys, all ducks, I know them.

  • He came back on the porch to study Daddy's red-headed canvasbacks, which he used to carry on hunting and drinking trips to the coastal sounds.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • Many hunters prefer to target the canvasback due to its delicious meat and impressive size.

  • In the wetlands of North America, the canvasback is easily recognized by its distinctive reddish head.

Synonyms

canvasback duck
vscanvasback
  • US
8.1

A large wild North American duck with a sloping profile and red head prized by hunters for its meat

is the shorter common name used without the species label
Aythya valisineria
vscanvasback
  • Specialized
9.9

A large North American wild duck called the canvasback with a reddish head and a long sloping beak

is the common everyday name rather than the formal Latin designation

Compounds

A large wild North American duck with a sloping profile and red head prized by hunters for its meat

Surface Forms

canvasback singular
canvasbacks plural

Morphology

canvasback = canvas + back (semi-transparent) = canvas + back

Formed from 'canvas' + 'back' (the components are clear) but the compound denotes a specific species of duck, a meaning not fully predictable from the parts.

Etymology

Canvasback probably comes from canvas, a strong 'cloth', because hunters thought the duck's pale back looked like old canvas. So the name points to the bird's back and helps you remember that canvasback is a kind of duck.