A bird is a creature with feathers and wings. Female birds lay eggs. Most birds can fly.
2. countable noun
Some men refer to young women as birds. This use could cause offence.
[British, informal]
3. See also early bird, game bird
4.
See the birds and (the) bees
5.
See do bird
6.
See birds of a feather
7.
See get/give so the bird
8.
See get/give so the bird
9.
See a bird in the hand
10.
See little bird
11.
See old bird
12.
See rare bird
13.
See to kill two birds with one stone
More Synonyms of bird
bird in British English
(bɜːd)
noun
1.
any warm-blooded egg-laying vertebrate of the class Aves, characterized by a body covering of feathers and forelimbs modified as wings. Birds vary in size between the ostrich and the humming bird
▶ Related adjectives: avian, ornithic
2. informal
a person (usually preceded by a qualifying adjective, as in the phrases rare bird, odd bird, clever bird)
3. British slang, sometimes offensive
a girl or young woman, esp one's girlfriend
4. slang
prison or a term in prison (esp in the phrase do bird; shortened from birdlime, rhyming slang for time)
5. a bird in the hand
6. the bird has flown
7. the birds and the bees
8. birds of a feather
9. get the bird
10. give someone the bird
11. kill two birds with one stone
12. like a bird
13. a little bird
14. for the birds
Derived forms
birdlike (ˈbirdlike)
adjective
Word origin
Old English bridd, of unknown origin
Bird in British English
(bɜːd)
noun
nickname of (Charlie) Parker
bird in American English
(bɜrd)
noun
1.
any of a class (Aves) of warmblooded, two-legged, egg-laying vertebrates with feathers and wings
2.
a small game bird
see also waterfowl
3.
a clay pigeon in trapshooting
4.
a shuttlecock
5. US, Informal
a person, esp. a mildly eccentric one
6. Slang
a sound of disapproval made by vibrating the lips
7. Slang
a rocket or guided missile
8. British, Slang
a young woman
verb intransitive
9.
to shoot or catch birds
10.
to engage in bird-watching
Idioms:
birds of a feather
eat like a bird
flip someone the bird
for the birds
the birds and the bees
Word origin
ME bird, brid < OE bridd, bird, orig., young bird
More idioms containing
bird
free as a bird
a rare bird
a little bird told me
eat like a bird
the early bird catches the worm
an early bird
a bird of passage
a bird in the hand
the bird has flown
Examples of 'bird' in a sentence
bird
The white part is quite conspicuous when the bird is flying away from you.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The female and the young birds follow as soon as they can.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Birds of prey sail in the sky.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
There were nine more incidents involving between one and four birds over the next three months.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Legend has it that if the birds were to fly away, the city would cease to exist.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
A new strain of bird flu is infecting poultry and ducks but has not yet spread to humans.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
They are enchanting little birds.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The bird feathers attached to various artifacts are of interest, as they can giveanthropologists further insight into customs and trade.
Smithsonian Mag (2017)
It bird that will be is probably the last rare bird that will be discovered in Britain this year, and it was still there yesterday.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The third was a shy little bird in my rib cage.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Likely head gardeners were rare birds in those days but these things often turn out well.
Jane Brown TALES OF THE ROSE TREE: Ravishing Rhododendrons and their Travels Around the World (2004)
It is easy to be alarmist about bird flu.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
These wandering individuals are mostly young birds.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
Members of the public discovered one bird dead in a village pond.
The Sun (2016)
We swooped like some bird of prey over the advancing army.
Baxter, Stephen Anti-Ice (1993)
The incident is not the first time a bird has been used with criminal intent.
The Sun (2015)
Look out for things like white feathers and birds that appear to follow you around thegarden.
The Sun (2013)
Eight others were also taken to hospital yesterday with suspected bird flu.
The Sun (2006)
These vegetarian birds like juicy young leaves.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
It would pass from one bird to another.
Aldiss, Brian Somewhere East of Life (1994)
They knock prey birds out of the sky.
Christianity Today (2000)
From time to time this bird may drop back and let another take over.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
He wears army fatigues and a hat with bird feathers.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
The bird is flying skywards with all its might and there are only two things that can happen.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
These birds would fly out each dawn and return at dusk carrying news of all that they had seen or heard.
Barrett, Clive The Gods of Asgard (1989)
It's a matter of taking the bird in the hand now.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
Undercover bird There are creatures that are always with us and which are more or less invisible.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
Twitter's little blue bird has had its wings scorched.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Watch out for otters, rare birds and butterflies.
The Sun (2013)
In his hand was the bird, still alive and well.
Richard Holmes Dusty Warriors: Modern Soldiers at War (2006)
Lay the birds skin-side down on the griddle pan and use a pan lid or something heavy to press them flatter against the grill.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Quotations
Be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as dovesBible: St. Matthew
magpie: a bird whose thievish disposition suggested to someone that it might be taught to talkAmbrose BierceThe Devil's Dictionary
Oh, a wondrous bird is the pelican! His beak can hold more than his belican. He takes in his beak Food enough for a week. But I'll be darned if I know how the helicanDixon Lanier Merritt
No ladder needs the bird but skies To situate its wings, Nor any leader's grim baton Arraigns it as it singsEmily Dickinson
Who wills devoutly to absorb, contain, birds give him painRichard WilburThe Beautiful Changes
I know what the caged bird feels, alas!Paul Lawrence DunbarSympathy
A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush
Birds of a feather flock together
Word lists with
bird
related adjectives, homes and habitations, male animals, female animals, baby and young animals
In other languages
bird
British English: bird /bɜːd/ NOUN
A bird is a creature with feathers and wings.
American English: bird
Arabic: طَائِر
Brazilian Portuguese: pássaro
Chinese: 鸟
Croatian: ptica
Czech: pták
Danish: fugl
Dutch: vogel
European Spanish: ave
Finnish: lintu
French: oiseau
German: Vogel
Greek: πουλί
Italian: uccello
Japanese: 鳥
Korean: 새 참새
Norwegian: fugl
Polish: ptak
European Portuguese: pássaro
Romanian: pasăre
Russian: птица
Latin American Spanish: ave
Swedish: fågel
Thai: นก
Turkish: kuş
Ukrainian: птах
Vietnamese: chim
All related terms of 'bird'
do bird
Someone who is doing bird is in prison .
bird bath
a small basin or trough for birds to bathe in, usually in a garden
bird cage
a wire or wicker cage in which captive birds are kept
bird dog
a dog used or trained to retrieve game birds after they are shot
bird flu
Bird flu is a virus which can be transmitted from chickens , ducks , and other birds to people.
bird food
a mixture of seeds, grains , nuts , etc, suitable for birds to eat
bird walk
an excursion , usually undertaken as a group with an expert leader, for observing and studying birds in their natural habitat
cage bird
a pet bird kept in a cage
fig-bird
any Australian oriole of the genus Sphecotheres , feeding on figs and other fruit
game bird
Game birds are birds which are shot for food or for sport .
old bird
Some people use the phrase old bird to refer to someone and say what they are like .
rare bird
If you say that someone or something is a rare bird , you mean that they are very unusual.
sea bird
a bird such as a gull , that lives on the sea
tick-bird
either of two African starlings , Buphagus africanus or B . erythrorhynchus, having flattened bills with which they obtain food from the hides of cattle
bird cherry
a small Eurasian rosaceous tree, Prunus padus , with clusters of white flowers and small black fruits
bird feeder
a device, usually a tube of mesh , containing food suitable for birds, which can be suspended outdoors
bird grass
→ rough bluegrass
bird louse
any of an order (Mallophaga) of small, wingless insects with biting mouthparts , that live as external parasites on birds
bird pepper
a tropical solanaceous plant, Capsicum frutescens , thought to be the ancestor of the sweet pepper and many hot peppers
bird spider
any large hairy predatory bird-eating spider of the family Aviculariidae , of tropical America
bird strike
a collision of an aircraft with a bird
bird table
A bird table is a small wooden platform on a pole which some people put in their garden in order to put food for the birds on it.
early bird
An early bird is someone who does something or goes somewhere very early, especially very early in the morning .
gooney bird
any of several albatrosses , esp. the black-footed albatross and the Laysan albatross, occurring on islands in the Pacific Ocean , often near naval bases
little bird
If you say that a little bird told you about something, you mean that someone has told you about it, but you do not want to say who it was.
locust bird
any of various pratincoles , esp Glareola nordmanni ( black-winged pratincole ), that feed on locusts
mutton bird
any of several long-winged seabirds , often used as food, esp Puffinus tenuirostris ( short-tailed shearwater ) of Australia and Puffinus griseus ( sooty shearwater ), which breeds in the Southern Hemisphere and winters in the Northern Hemisphere
night-bird
a bird which is active at night , such as an owl , nightingale , etc
parson bird
a New Zealand honeyeater, Prosthemadera novaeseelandiae , having a glossy bluish-green plumage with white feathers at the throat : it mimics human speech and the songs of other birds
pilot bird
a warbler of forest floors in SE Australia, Pycnoptilus floccosus, named from its alleged habit of accompanying the superb lyrebird
scrub bird
either of two fast-running wren-like passerine birds, Atrichornis clamosus or A. rufescens, that constitute the Australian family Atrichornithidae
shore bird
any of various birds that live close to water, esp any bird of the families Charadriidae or Scolopacidae ( plovers , sandpipers , etc)
sugar bird
a South African nectar-eating bird, Promerops cafer, with a long curved bill and long tail : family Meliphagidae ( honey-eaters )
tropic bird
any of a family (Phaethontidae) of tropical pelecaniform sea birds characterized by white plumage with black markings and a pair of long tail feathers
wading bird
a long-legged bird that walks in water to catch fish, etc
water bird
A water bird is a bird that swims or walks in water, especially lakes and rivers . There are many kinds of water bird.
whidah bird
any of various predominantly black African weaverbirds of the genus Vidua and related genera, the males of which grow very long tail feathers in the breeding season
whydah bird
any of various predominantly black African weaverbirds of the genus Vidua and related genera, the males of which grow very long tail feathers in the breeding season
adjutant bird
either of two large carrion-eating storks , Leptoptilos dubius or L . javanicus, which are closely related and similar to the marabou and occur in S and SE Asia
apostle bird
a gregarious grey-and-brown Australian nest-building bird, Struthidea cinerea
bird-brained
silly ; stupid
bird colonel
a full colonel in the US Army
bird fancier
a person who keeps, breeds , or sells birds
bird nesting
the activity of searching for birds' nests as a hobby
bird's-eye
seen or photographed from high above
bird-spotter
a bird-watcher
bird-watcher
A bird-watcher is a person whose hobby is watching and studying wild birds in their natural surroundings.
bird-watching
Bird-watching is the activity of watching and studying wild birds in their natural surroundings.
diamond bird
any small insectivorous Australian songbird of the genus Pardalotus, having a diamond-patterned plumage
elephant bird
any of the large extinct flightless birds of the genus Aepyornis , remains of which have been found in Madagascar
Chinese translation of 'bird'
bird
(bəːd)
n(c)
(Zool) 鸟(鳥) (niǎo) (只, zhī)
(Brit, inf, = woman) 姑娘 (gūniang)
a bird in the hand已到手的东(東)西 (yǐ dàoshǒu de dōngxi)
to kill two birds with one stone一举(舉)两(兩)得 (yī jǔ liǎng dé)
(noun)
a rare bird
Synonyms
feathered friend
birdie
fledgling
fowl
warbler
songbird
related words
related adjectivesavianornithic
name of malecock
name of femalehen
name of youngchickfledgelingfledglingnestling
collective nounsflockcongregationflightvolery
name of homenest
related maniaornithomania
related phobiaornithophobia
see also subject word lists:
See Sea birdsSee Types of fowl
subject word lists
See BirdsSee extinct birds
Quotations
Be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves [Bible: St. Matthew]magpie: a bird whose thievish disposition suggested to someone that it might be taught to talk [Ambrose Bierce – The Devil's Dictionary]Oh, a wondrous bird is the pelican! His beak can hold more than his belican. He takes in his beak Food enough for a week. But I'll be darned if I know how the helican [Dixon Lanier Merritt]No ladder needs the bird but skies To situate its wings, Nor any leader's grim baton Arraigns it as it sings [Emily Dickinson]Who wills devoutly to absorb, contain, birds give him pain [Richard Wilbur – The Beautiful Changes]I know what the caged bird feels, alas! [Paul Lawrence Dunbar – Sympathy]
proverbs
A bird in the hand is worth two in the bushBirds of a feather flock together