tiger salamander
- noun
- /ˈtaɪɡər ˈsæləmændər/
- US
:
salamandra tigre
- Researchers are studying the habitat preferences of the tiger salamander to aid in its conservation.
- tiger salamander, Ambystoma
- tiger salamander, Ambystoma tigrinum
- tiger salamander larvae
Examples
-
All his meteorological diaries, his bacteria, electric eels, mimosas, and tiger salamanders!
Fiction book (1993) -
During the first year in high school, Illimar still attended the natural science club, studied cacti, and fed the larvae of tiger salamanders, but he seemed to be losing interest.
Fiction book (1993) -
The two tiger salamander morphs do not differ in kin recognition abilities; however, probably because both are normally predacious, both would therefore need kin recognition abilities.
Academic text (1997) -
The tiger salamander is often found in ponds and marshes throughout North America.
-
During the summer, you can see tiger salamanders with their distinctive yellowish blotches in the wetlands.
Synonyms
A large salamander from North America with dark body and yellowish tiger-like markings
Surface Forms
Morphology
tiger + salamander
The compound is a straightforward modifier+noun: 'tiger' describes a characteristic of the salamander (tiger-like markings/size), so a learner who knows both words can infer it is a kind of salamander with tiger-like appearance. This compositional pattern is cross-linguistically common for species names, making the meaning immediately accessible even if the learner lacks detailed biological knowledge.
Etymology
Tiger salamander: The name tiger salamander comes from its look: the large salamander has yellow marks on a dark body that remind people of a tiger. That's why the name means 'a large salamander with tiger-like marks'.
