water vole
- noun
:
topillo de agua
- While hiking near the lake, we spotted a water vole swimming gracefully in the water.
Examples
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The water vole often builds its nest near riverbanks, where it can easily find food.
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In the wetlands, the water vole is an important part of the ecosystem, helping to aerate the soil.
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b) Although the fact is that "many rodents are omnivores," water voles are not, and the diet of nominally omnivorous house mice is not known to include other mammals.
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and b) although the facts are that "many rodents are omnivores," water voles are not, and the diet of nominally omnivorous house mice is not known to include other mammals.
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Synonyms
A small animal like a rat that lives in or near water
A large mouse-like animal that lives near rivers and lakes in Europe and Asia
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a vole that lives near water' is directly and compositionally derived from 'water' + 'vole'; it is a straightforward nominal compound naming an animal. There is no idiomatic or metaphorical shift and the compounding pattern is common cross-linguistically, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will understand it.
Etymology
Water vole is a simple name that shows the animal: a vole, a small mouse-like rodent, that lives in or near water and is often seen swimming by ponds and streams. So today water vole means 'a rodent that lives near water' and is sometimes called a 'water rat'.
