petrel
any of numerous tube-nosed seabirds of the families Procellariidae, Hydrobatidae, and Pelecanoididae.
Origin of petrel
1- Compare storm petrel, diving petrel.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use petrel in a sentence
At this same spot, large flocks of silver-grey petrels were seen resting on the ice and skimming the water in search of food.
The Home of the Blizzard | Douglas MawsonBirds innumerable appeared on every hand: snow petrels, silver petrels, Cape pigeons and Antarctic petrels.
The Home of the Blizzard | Douglas MawsonIn isolated coveys on the inclined top of the "island" were several flocks, each containing hundreds of Antarctic petrels.
The Home of the Blizzard | Douglas MawsonOf these some were flat and others peaked, but all were thickly populated by penguins, petrels and seals.
The Home of the Blizzard | Douglas MawsonGiant petrels and skua gulls swarmed in flocks round the seals' and penguins' carcases.
The Home of the Blizzard | Douglas Mawson
British Dictionary definitions for petrel
/ (ˈpɛtrəl) /
any oceanic bird of the order Procellariiformes, having a hooked bill and tubular nostrils: includes albatrosses, storm petrels, and shearwaters: See also storm petrel
Origin of petrel
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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