Virginia rail
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of Virginia rail
An Americanism dating back to 1775–85
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.
Between them runs a lively, gurgling brook, which used to be frequented by woodcock, and the Virginia rail, and passes close by Mrs. Emerson's garden.
From Sketches from Concord and Appledore by Stearns, Frank Preston
At that time I weighed one hundred and ninety pounds, was in vigorous health and strength, tough as hickory, and could go over or through a Virginia rail fence as deftly as a mule.
From The Story of a Cannoneer Under Stonewall Jackson by Moore, Edward A.
The broad green pads offer the Virginia rail a secluded perch, where he may consider which quarter of the shining mud flats will prove the best feeding ground for the day.
From Sigurd Our Golden Collie and Other Comrades of the Road by Bates, Katharine Lee
At our approach the heron has flown and the little Virginia rail has scuttled away among the reeds.
From The Log of the Sun A Chronicle of Nature's Year by Beebe, William
The six-muled teams appeared in a few moments and were whipped up alongside of the Virginia rail fence.
From Charles Carleton Coffin War Correspondent, Traveller, Author, and Statesman by Griffis, William Elliot
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
