lesser panda
- noun
- /ˈlɛsər ˈpændə/
- Indian
:
panda rojo
- The lesser panda spends most of its time in trees, feeding on bamboo and berries.
Examples
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The lesser panda is often mistaken for a raccoon.
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The zoo's new exhibit features two lesser pandas from the eastern Himalayas.
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Unlike the giant panda, the lesser panda has a long, bushy tail and reddish fur.
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Many visitors were excited to see the lesser pandas at the zoo.
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The lesser panda, known for its striking reddish-brown fur, mainly resides in tree canopies.
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During my trip to China, I was lucky enough to see a lesser panda in its natural habitat.
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The lesser panda is often mistaken for a raccoon because of its similar physical appearance.
Synonyms
8
1.0
A small reddish-brown animal like a raccoon that lives in trees
1
3.7
A small animal with red-brown fur that lives in trees and eats bamboo
A small reddish-brown mammal that lives in the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China
A small animal with reddish-brown fur that lives in trees in the Himalayas
A small reddish-brown animal like a raccoon that lives in the eastern Himalayas and eats bamboo
Surface Forms
Morphology
The noun phrase is transparently compositional: 'lesser' indicates smaller or reduced size/significance and 'panda' names the animal, so a learner who knows both words can infer it refers to a smaller/kind of panda. While finer taxonomic details (raccoon-like, red panda) may require exposure, the core meaning is directly derivable from the constituents.
Etymology
Lesser panda comes from early explorers who saw a small, red animal and compared it to the much bigger panda; they used lesser to mean 'smaller' and panda for the animal. So the name helps you remember that this is a small, tree-living mammal also called the 'red panda'.