stork
Americannoun
plural
storks,plural
stork-
any of several wading birds of the family Ciconiidae, having long legs and a long neck and bill.
-
the stork, this bird as the mythical or symbolic deliverer of a new baby.
My brother and his wife are expecting the stork in July.
noun
-
any large wading bird of the family Ciconiidae, chiefly of warm regions of the Old World, having very long legs and a long stout pointed bill, and typically having a white-and-black plumage: order Ciconiiformes
-
(sometimes capital) a variety of domestic fancy pigeon resembling the fairy swallow
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of stork
before 900; Middle English; Old English storc; cognate with German Storch, Old Norse storkr; akin to stark
Explanation
A stork is a large water bird with long legs, a big bill, and a legendary reputation for leaving babies on doorsteps. Real storks don't deliver babies; they mostly stand around in marshes all day. Myths going back to ancient European folklore describe storks delivering infants to their expectant parents. In Europe, it was considered good luck if a stork made a nest on a house, and that became a handy answer to questions about where babies come from: The stork brought it! Sometimes the common birthmarks on the backs of babies' heads are even called "stork bites."
Vocabulary lists containing stork
Birds, Birds, Birds, List 1
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Kennedy launched Operation Stork Speed, the first federal review of its kind in decades, in March of last year.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 29, 2026
As Consumer Reports pointed out on Instagram, their results come a year after the HHS and Food and Drug Administration announced “Operation Stork Speed,” an initiative to improve the domestic infant formula supply.
From Salon • Mar. 20, 2026
In a posting on X, Stratcom Capital’s Carsten Stork described the plunge as “pure market mechanics after euphoria,” with over-extended positions unwound and algorithms triggering profit-taking.
From MarketWatch • Oct. 22, 2025
Ms Johnson founded her company, The Stork and I, to support women who are single and don’t want to miss out on parenthood.
From BBC • Dec. 8, 2024
Why was Coach Stork hollering at her to make the save?
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
