stork
Americannoun
-
storks,
plural
-
stork
plural
-
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
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
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
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for March 30–April 5, 2024
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
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.
See Examples For:
Zookeepers in an online group began asking whether any facility was missing a Marabou stork.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 2, 2026
Among those taken in are a blind swan, an eagle with an amputated wing and a stork that suffered a concussion during an air attack.
From Barron's ● May 20, 2026
The work by Rabone, from South Staffordshire, will examine how well the white stork can adapt to different environments and habitats, alongside what the public, farmers and land managers think about the plans.
From BBC ● May 10, 2026
The closest relative of the New World vultures, Kendall said, is actually that emblem of motherhood, the stork.
From Salon ● May 11, 2025
The stork was my only way out of here.
From "March Forward, Girl" by Melba Pattillo Beals
There are 35 species, ranging from ravens to cranes, falcons to storks.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026
Walking around, Snopko spoke affectionately about the "love stories" that have formed among the storks.
From Barron's ● May 20, 2026
In December, plans were announced for a breeding colony of white storks to be introduced to Eastbrookend Country Park in Dagenham in London for the first time in 600 years.
From BBC ● May 10, 2026
To do this, they drew data from 400 storks to generate estimates of where flocks were located in the landscape.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 17, 2024
I forced my mind toward happy thoughts—August, warmth, storks, home—anything to distract myself from the swelling pressure inside me.
From "Salt to the Sea" by Ruta Sepetys
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.
