tern
1any of numerous aquatic birds of the subfamily Sterninae of the family Laridae, related to the gulls but usually having a more slender body and bill, smaller feet, a long, deeply forked tail, and a more graceful flight, especially those of the genus Sterna, as S. hirundo(common tern ), of Eurasia and America, having white, black, and gray plumage.
Origin of tern
1Words that may be confused with tern
- tern , turn
Words Nearby tern
Other definitions for tern (2 of 2)
a set of three.
three winning numbers drawn together in a lottery.
a prize won by drawing these.
Origin of tern
2Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use tern in a sentence
The Common tern is a regular but not numerous spring and autumn visitant to the Islands, some remaining to breed.
Birds of Guernsey (1879) | Cecil SmithI mark this by inserting a paragraph-mark ( ) at the beginning of each tern.
Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 (of 7) -- Romaunt of the Rose; Minor Poems | Geoffrey ChaucerEach tern is occupied with a distinct subject, which I indicate by headings, viz.
Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 (of 7) -- Romaunt of the Rose; Minor Poems | Geoffrey ChaucerThe latter had shot and wounded a tern, but before he could reach it, the helpless bird was carried off by its companions.
Man And His Ancestor | Charles MorrisThe common tern and the greater sand-plover nested on the shingly islands in the river.
Mount Everest the Reconnaissance, 1921 | Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury
British Dictionary definitions for tern (1 of 2)
/ (tɜːn) /
any aquatic bird of the subfamily Sterninae, having a forked tail, long narrow wings, a pointed bill, and a typically black-and-white plumage: family Laridae (gulls, etc), order Charadriiformes
Origin of tern
1British Dictionary definitions for tern (2 of 2)
/ (tɜːn) /
a three-masted schooner
rare a group of three
Origin of tern
2Collins 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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