Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
pin-tailed duck

pin-tailed duck

8.6
A duck with a long neck and long thin tail feathers
  • noun
translation icon : pato de cola de pin
  • The pin-tailed duck is easily recognized by its slender, elongated tail feathers.

Examples

  • We spotted a male pin-tailed duck gliding across the marsh at sunrise.

  • During migration, flocks of pin-tailed ducks can often be seen in northern wetlands.

  • The pin-tailed duck is known for its striking appearance.

  • Have you ever seen a pin-tailed duck in the wild?

  • During migration, flocks of pin-tailed ducks can often be seen in northern wetlands.

  • The pin-tailed duck is easily recognized by its slender, elongated tail feathers.

  • We spotted a male pin-tailed duck gliding across the marsh at sunrise.

Synonyms

pintail
vspin-tailed duck
1 7.5

A duck with a long neck and pointed tail feathers

is the hyphenated two-word spelling used instead of the single word
Anas acuta
vspin-tailed duck
  • Specialized
9.9

A duck with a long neck and pointed tail feathers

is the common hyphenated name used in ordinary speech

Surface Forms

pin-tailed duck singular
pin-tailed ducks plural

Morphology

pin-tailed + duck

The phrase is fully compositional: 'pin-tailed' describes having a tail like a pin (i.e. elongated central tail feathers) and 'duck' is the bird, so the overall sense 'a duck with a pin-like/elongated tail' is directly derivable from the parts. This literal, descriptive formation follows normal adjective + noun composition and would be understandable to a B1 learner who knows the constituent words.

Etymology

Pin-tailed duck comes from the bird's long, thin central tail feathers that stick out like a pin at the tail. So, pin-tailed duck simply means a duck with a narrow, pointed tail.