murciélago

Spanish
FWOTD – 4 February 2013

Alternative forms

Etymology

Metathetic diminutive of murciego (cf. murciégalo), from Old Spanish mur (“mouse”) + ciego (“blind”) or from Latin mūris caecus, both from mūs. Compare Portuguese morcego, Galician morcego.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): (Spain) /muɾˈθjelaɡo/ [muɾˈθje.la.ɣ̞o]
  • IPA(key): (Latin America) /muɾˈsjelaɡo/ [muɾˈsje.la.ɣ̞o]
  • Rhymes: -elaɡo
  • Syllabification: mur‧cié‧la‧go

Noun

murciélago m (plural murciélagos, feminine murciélaga, feminine plural murciélagas)

  1. bat (winged mammal)
    Synonyms: panarra, (New Mexico) ratón volador
    • 1800, Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, chapter 12, in Historia General del Perú:
      ...adoraban al buho por la hermosura de sus ojos y cabeza, y al murciélago por la sutileza de su vista...
      ...they adored the owl for the prettiness of its eyes and head, and the bat for the subtlety of its sight...

Derived terms

Further reading
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