laughing jackass

American  

noun

1. kookaburra.

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laughing jackass British  

noun

1. another name for kookaburra

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Etymology

Origin of laughing jackass

First recorded in 1780–90; so called because of its loud braying sound

Example Sentences

In the Zoological Gardens of Adelaide I saw the only laughing jackass that ever showed any disposition to be courteous to me.

From Following the Equator, Part 2 by Twain, Mark

They imitate with precision the notes of the laughing jackass, the parrot, the solemn mopoke, and moreover they reproduce every sound made by man.

From Australian Pictures Drawn with Pen and Pencil by Willoughby, Howard

They were again awakened by that irrepressible fellow, the laughing jackass, at early dawn, and on looking out from their leafy bower they found that the ground beneath their feet was dry.

From The Young Berringtons The Boy Explorers by Kingston, William Henry Giles

The settler heard a bird laugh in what he thought an extremely ridiculous manner, its opening notes suggesting a donkey's bray—he called it the "laughing jackass."

From Austral English A dictionary of Australasian words, phrases and usages with those aboriginal-Australian and Maori words which have become incorporated in the language, and the commoner scientific words that have had their origin in Australasia by Morris, Edward Ellis

Few of the birds of Australia have pleased me as much as this curious laughing jackass, though it is both clumsy and unattractive in colour.

From Austral English A dictionary of Australasian words, phrases and usages with those aboriginal-Australian and Maori words which have become incorporated in the language, and the commoner scientific words that have had their origin in Australasia by Morris, Edward Ellis