pintail

American  

[pin-teyl] / ˈpɪnˌteɪl /

noun

• pintails,
  plural
• pintail
  plural

1. a long-necked river duck, Anas acuta, of the Old and New Worlds, having long and narrow middle tail feathers.

2. sharp-tailed grouse.

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pintail British  

/ ˈpɪnˌteɪl /

noun

1. a greyish-brown duck, Anas acuta, with slender pointed wings and a pointed tail

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• pintail
  plural
• pintails
  plural

Etymology

Origin of pintail

First recorded in 1760–70; pin + tail ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pintail pintails

The zoo said a Northern pintail duck was also killed by the fox and three other flamingos were hurt and were being treated at the zoo’s veterinary hospital.

From Washington Post ● May 3, 2022

As the Prairie Pothole Region goes, so goes the northern pintail.

From Slate ● May 10, 2018

First last August come the iconic northern pintail, an elegant duck, with its needle tail and long, slim profile.

From National Geographic ● Jul. 16, 2015

The detection in the pintail duck was the first time the H5N2 strain had been discovered in Washington, and the Tri-Cities outbreak was the first detection in the state’s domestic poultry, Castro said.

From Washington Times ● Jan. 14, 2015

A flock of pintail ducks planed down over the papyrus marsh and vanished among the reeds.

From "The Golden Goblet" by Eloise Jarvis McGraw

There and at ponds on the north side of Miller Butte there were also mallards, buffleheads, a greenwing teal, pintails, a couple of hooded mergansers, a ruddy duck and others.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 26, 2017

Mallards, teals and pintails are common on the Somerset Levels but according to Grahame Madge, the floods will have made it difficult for them to feed.

From BBC ● Feb. 17, 2014

For families, this can mean trading mouse ears for yoga mats, taking history tours, and spotting northern pintails in state and national parks.

From Slate ● Jun. 27, 2012

Since then, thousands of birders have observed it paddling among mallards, pintails and geese, said Lora Haller, who works at the Colusa Wildlife Refuge’s visitor center.

From Washington Post ● Jan. 7, 2012

Thus, one winter, pintails will swarm; another, gadwalls and garganeys are conspicuous; the next, at corresponding seasons, one or the other will, perhaps, be almost entirely absent.

From Wild Spain (Espa?a agreste) Records of Sport with Rifle, Rod, and Gun, Natural History Exploration by Walter J. Buck