waterfowl

American  

[waw-ter-faul, wot-er-] / ˈwɔ tərˌfaʊl, ˈwɒt ər- /

noun

• waterfowls,
  plural
• waterfowl
  plural

1. a water bird, especially a swimming bird.

2. such birds taken collectively, especially the swans, geese, and ducks.

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waterfowl British  

/ ˈwɔːtəˌfaʊl /

noun

1. any aquatic freshwater bird, esp any species of the family Anatidae (ducks, geese, and swans)

2. such birds collectively

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• waterfowl
  plural
• waterfowls
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of waterfowl

1250–1300; Middle English; cognate with German Wasservogel; see water, fowl

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

waterfowl waterfowls

Work will begin in the autumn to create new wetland areas that will support bats, newts, kingfishers and internationally important populations of wading birds and waterfowl.

From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026

Rawlence explained that although waterfowl fossils are abundant at St Bathans, goose remains are much less common.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 11, 2026

By the early 1990s, duck populations had exceeded the high of the 1950s; by 2015 almost 50 million waterfowl populated the prairie pothole region of the northern Great Plains.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026

The avian influenza virus known as H5N1 has threatened U.S. poultry farms since 2022, after migratory waterfowl carried a new strain of the virus into North and South America.

From Barron's ● Oct. 28, 2025

We landed, in fact, parallel to a canal, like there were two runways: one for us and one for waterfowl.

From "The Fault in Our Stars" by John Green

In the wild, influenza viruses generally spread among migratory waterfowls, such as ducks and geese.

From Salon ● Apr. 18, 2024

In fact, fast-swimming marine mammals and waterfowls tend to forgo drag-based thrust in favor of lift-based thrust, another propulsion system.

From Science Daily ● Jan. 8, 2024

The buffer of plants will discourages waterfowls, which prefer open grassy areas and succulent lawns, according to the public-health department.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 13, 2021

Currecoos are waterfowls, as big as pretty large chickens, of a bluish colour, with short legs and tail; they feed also in swampy ground and are very good meat.

From A Voyage to New Holland by William Dampier

For many years the tops of immense trees could be seen in the water by boatmen as they hunted the waterfowls or cast line for the fish with which it abounds.

From Stories of Old Kentucky by Martha Grassham Purcell

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