indigo bird
- noun
- /ˈɪndɪɡoʊ bɜrd/
- US
:
pájaro índigo
- We spotted an indigo bird perched on the fence, its feathers shining brightly in the morning sun.
Examples
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Every summer, the indigo bird returns to our backyard to nest among the shrubs.
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The vibrant blue color makes the indigo bird easy to spot among other common songbirds.
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Look at that indigo bird!
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I spotted an indigo bird in the garden.
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The male indigo bird sings beautifully during the spring to attract a mate.
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During our hike, we spotted an indigo bird perched on a branch, its deep blue feathers shining in the sunlight.
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In the garden, I often hear the melodious calls of the indigo bird echoing through the trees.
Synonyms
A small North American songbird with bright blue feathers on the male during breeding season
A small North American songbird with deep blue feathers
A small North American songbird whose male has bright blue feathers in summer
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun phrase is directly compositional: 'indigo' names a deep blue‑violet color and 'bird' denotes the animal, so the phrase denotes a bird with indigo coloration. This adjective+noun pattern is transparent and cross‑linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both words would readily infer the meaning.
Etymology
Indigo bird gets its name from the deep blue color of the male. One popular story says people compared that bright blue to indigo dye used on cloth, so indigo, meaning 'deep blue', plus bird gives a simple image of a small blue songbird.
