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bird

(bûrd)

a. Any of various warm-blooded egg-laying feathered vertebrates of the class Aves, having forelimbs modified to form wings.

b. Such an animal hunted as game.

c. Such an animal, especially a chicken or turkey, used as food: put the bird in the oven.

2. See clay pigeon.

3. Sports See shuttlecock.

4. Slang A rocket, guided missile, satellite, or airplane.

5. Slang A person, especially one who is odd or remarkable: a sly old bird.

6. Chiefly British Slang A young woman.

7. Slang

a. A loud sound expressing disapproval; a raspberry.

b. Discharge from employment: lost a big sale and nearly got the bird.

8. An obscene gesture of anger, defiance, or derision made by pointing or jabbing the middle finger upward.

intr.v. bird·ed, bird·ing, birds

1. To observe and identify birds in their natural surroundings.

2. To trap, shoot, or catch birds.

Idiom:

for the birds

Objectionable or worthless.

[Middle English, from Old English brid, young bird.]

birding n.

Bird

(bûrd), Larry Joe Born 1956.

American basketball player and coach. As a forward for the Boston Celtics (1979-1992), he helped lead the team to three world championships between 1981 and 1986 and was named the NBA's most valuable player three times.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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