stone marten
- noun
- UK
:
marta
- Unlike the pine marten, the stone marten has a distinctive pale throat patch.
Examples
-
Farmers sometimes consider the stone marten a pest because it nests in barns and attics.
-
The stone marten is often seen near human settlements in central Europe.
-
The stone marten is known for its agility.
-
Many people have spotted a stone marten in the wild.
-
Farmers sometimes consider the stone marten a pest because it nests in barns and attics.
-
The stone marten is often seen near human settlements in central Europe.
-
Unlike the pine marten, the stone marten has a distinctive pale throat patch.
Synonyms
1
8.1
A small, quick forest animal like a weasel with soft fur
A small wild mammal with brown fur and a pale chest, also called the beech marten
A small animal with brown fur and a pale chest and throat that lives in woods and rocky places
A small wild mammal like a weasel that lives in trees and hunts small animals
Surface Forms
Morphology
This is a transparent adjective+noun compound: 'stone' describes a quality and 'marten' names the animal, so a learner who knows both words can infer it refers to a marten with a stone-like (pale/brownish) appearance or association. Adjective+animal species names are cross-linguistically common, so the meaning is compositionally derivable without prior exposure.
Etymology
Stone marten is named for where people often found the animal: stone for the rocky walls and old buildings it likes, and marten for the small wild mammal. Because this animal often hides in walls, roofs and near houses, the name came to mean the brown species with a pale throat that lives near people.