penguin

American  

[peng-gwin, pen-] / ˈpɛŋ gwɪn, ˈpɛn- /

noun

Ornithology.

• penguins
  plural

1. any of several flightless, aquatic birds of the family Spheniscidae, of the Southern Hemisphere, having webbed feet and wings reduced to flippers.

2. Obsolete. great auk.

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penguin British  

/ ˈpɛŋɡwɪn /

noun

1. any flightless marine bird, such as Aptenodytes patagonica (king penguin) and Pygoscelis adeliae ( Adélie penguin ), of the order Sphenisciformes of cool southern, esp Antarctic, regions: they have wings modified as flippers, webbed feet, and feathers lacking barbs See also emperor penguin king penguin

2. an obsolete name for great auk

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• penguins
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of penguin

1570–80; origin uncertain; perhaps < Welsh pen gwyn literally, white head (referring to the great auk in its winter plumage); later misapplied to the Spheniscidae

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Explanation

What's black and white and loves to eat seafood? A penguin! Penguins are flightless water birds, and the only place in the Northern Hemisphere where you'll find wild penguins is on the Galápagos Islands. If you live north of the equator, your interactions with penguins are limited to zoos and aquariums. Penguins are distinctive because of their contrasting black-and-white coloring, their size, and the fact that they walk and swim but don't fly. Their wings have, in fact, evolved to act as flippers in the water. You might think of penguins as cold-weather birds, and many do live in Antarctica, but most are found in more temperate areas.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

penguin penguins

Zavodovski Island was home to the largest penguin colony in the world, but researchers who carried out the surveys say it has now lost that accolade.

From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026

Another species of penguin, the macaroni, also nests on the island and is thriving, which scientists believe is linked to their more varied diet.

From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026

Ice loss in Antarctica, meanwhile, is threatening penguin populations on the frozen continent.

From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026

More than 90 percent of emperor penguin colonies could be near-extinct by 2100 if sea ice loss persists at its current rate.

From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026

Now a penguin may look very strange in a living room, but a living room looks very strange to a penguin.

From "Mr. Popper's Penguins" by Florence Atwater and Richard Atwater

Its goal is to restore the site, which has the world's southernmost Post Office, museum, and more than 1,000 gentoo penguins.

From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026

According to the study, there were 63% fewer occuplied nests of chinstrap penguins in 2025 than at the same time in 2011.

From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026

Record-low Antarctic sea ice in 2022 coincided with the first-ever recorded large-scale breeding failure of emperor penguins, the report said.

From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026

Emperor penguins rely on stable sea ice to live, hunt and breed and their chicks can perish if they fall in freezing water before developing waterproof feathers.

From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026

When they saw Mrs. Popper coming after them, the penguins felt very guilty, because they knew they did not belong there.

From "Mr. Popper's Penguins" by Florence Atwater and Richard Atwater

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