Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
spotted lynx

spotted lynx

8.5
A wild cat with a short tail and dark spots on its fur from southern Europe
  • noun
  • UK
translation icon : lince ibérico
  • Unlike the Eurasian lynx, the spotted lynx has distinctive dark spots on its fur.

Examples

  • The endangered spotted lynx is protected in national parks across Spain and Portugal.

  • Conservation efforts have helped increase the population of the spotted lynx in Andalusia.

  • The spotted lynx is critically endangered.

  • Have you ever seen a spotted lynx in the wild?

  • Conservation efforts have helped increase the population of the spotted lynx in Andalusia.

  • The endangered spotted lynx is protected in national parks across Spain and Portugal.

  • Unlike the Eurasian lynx, the spotted lynx has distinctive dark spots on its fur.

Synonyms

Lynx pardina
vsspotted lynx
  • Specialized
9.9

A rare wild cat from Spain and Portugal with spotted fur and a short tail

refers to the same species across southern Europe in a broader sense

Surface Forms

spotted lynx singular
spotted lynxes plural

Morphology

spotted + lynx

This is a straightforward noun phrase where 'spotted' (having spots) modifies 'lynx' (a wildcat), so the meaning—a lynx with a spotted coat—is directly and transparently derived from the constituents. The compositional pattern (adjective + noun describing a visible property) is cross-linguistically common and easily inferable by a B1 learner who knows both words.

Etymology

Spotted lynx is a name that comes from the animal's look: spotted for the dark dots on its fur and lynx for the short-tailed cat. So the name today simply means this particular 'wildcat' found in southern Europe.