Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
yellow-breasted chat

yellow-breasted chat

8.2
A large North American bird that sings and often copies other birds, with a green back and bright yellow breast
  • noun
  • /ˈjɛloʊˌbrɛstɪd tʃæt/
  • Specialized
translation icon : charlatán pechiamarillo
  • The yellow-breasted chat is known for its loud and varied calls that mimic those of other birds.

Examples

  • The yellow-breasted chat is known for its loud and varied calls.

  • We were excited to spot a yellow-breasted chat during our morning birdwatching trip.

  • Many bird enthusiasts travel to see the elusive yellow-breasted chat in its natural habitat.

  • I spotted a yellow-breasted chat in the garden.

  • The yellow-breasted chat sings beautifully.

  • Many bird enthusiasts travel to see the elusive yellow-breasted chat in its natural habitat.

  • We were excited to spot a yellow-breasted chat during our morning birdwatching trip in the park.

Synonyms

Icteria virens
vsyellow-breasted chat
  • Specialized
9.9

A large North American songbird with a bright yellow breast that copies other birds' songs

is the common name used in everyday speech rather than the scientific name

Surface Forms

yellow-breasted chat singular
yellow-breasted chats plural

Morphology

yellow-breasted + chat

The phrase is fully compositional: 'yellow-breasted' transparently means 'having a yellow breast' and 'chat' is a type of small songbird, so the compound denotes a bird with a yellow breast. This adjective+noun construction follows normal English compounding patterns (and similar patterns in many languages), so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words should be able to infer the meaning.

Etymology

Yellow-breasted chat gets its name from two simple things: a bright yellow breast and a very noisy, changeable song. People used yellow-breasted to point to the yellow front and chat because the bird seems to 'chat' by making many different calls, so the name tells you how it looks and how it sounds.