mountain goat
1
2.7
- noun
- /ˈmaʊntən ɡoʊt/
- US
:
cabra de montaña
- The mountain goat grazed peacefully on the alpine grass as we admired its striking white fur.
- mountain goats and bighorn
- mountain goats and deer
- mountain goats and bears
We saw a freaking was it a mountain goat?
- We saw a freaking was it a mountain goat?
- And, and, and if we take that that example and the example of the mountain goats, it's easy to conclude that play is about sort of rote memory.
Examples
-
" You're as surefooted as a mountain goat on that rocky trail.
Fiction book (1997) -
The mountain goat is in jeopardy there because a recent draft of an environmental impact statement contends that the goats, as non-natives of the park, threaten native vegetation.
Academic text (1995) -
- Look at the baby mountain goats!
-
Run, you little mountain goats!
-
Follow the whispering leaves and the call of the mountain goat.
-
I don't see any mountain goats.
-
Cathy Sue and Roger Anunsen are trying to save the mountain goat in Olympic National Park in the Pacific Northwest.
Academic text (1995) -
While hiking in the Rockies, we spotted a mountain goat skillfully navigating the rocky cliffs.
-
In the steep, rugged terrain, we watched a mountain goat leap effortlessly between the ledges.
Synonyms
A wild goat that climbs steep mountain cliffs in northwest North America
A large white mountain goat that lives on steep rocky cliffs
A North American mountain goat that lives on steep cliffs
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound 'mountain goat' is transparently compositional: a B1 learner who knows 'mountain' and 'goat' can infer it refers to a goat associated with mountains. Detailed species attributes (size, color, native range) are encyclopedic additions but do not affect the basic, directly derivable meaning.
Etymology
Mountain goat is the name of a real animal: a white goat that lives on high mountain rocks and can climb steep slopes with very steady feet. Because of that clear image, calling someone a mountain goat means they are 'very good at climbing' or 'steady on their feet' in hard places.