tailorbird

American

[tey-ler-burd] / ˈteɪ lərˌbɜrd /

noun

any of several small Asian passerine birds, especially of the genus Orthotomus, that stitch leaves together to form and conceal their nests.

tailorbird British

/ ˈteɪləˌbɜːd /

noun

any of several tropical Asian warblers of the genus Orthotomus, which build nests by sewing together large leaves using plant fibres

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of tailorbird

First recorded in 1760–70; tailor ¹ + bird

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

It was Darzee, the Tailorbird, and his wife.

From The Jungle Book by Kipling, Rudyard

Darzee, the Tailorbird, helped him, and Chuchundra, the musk-rat, who never comes out into the middle of the floor, but always creeps round by the wall, gave him advice, but Rikki-tikki did the real fighting.

From The Jungle Book by Kipling, Rudyard

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023