Caption on a nature site: "Ruby-_Throat_ Hummingbird"

[Charles C Doyle]

Like "white-tailed deer" (2,770,000 raw Google hits) vs. "white-tail deer" (780,000 hits).  The OED acknowledges both forms.

--Charlie

________________________________________
From: American Dialect Society [ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] on behalf of Arnold Zwicky [zwicky at STANFORD.EDU]
Sent: Sunday, July 08, 2012 12:20 AM
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
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>>
>> Till now, I'd been under the impression that the hummingbird was
>> called "ruby-throat_ed_."

this example is unclear, since it could be a reinterpretation, as 'hummingbird with a ruby throat'.

arnold

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