wader

American  

[wey-der] / ˈweɪ dər /

noun

1. a person or thing that wades.

2. Also called wading bird.  any of various large birds having long legs, long necks, and long bills, that are adapted for wading in shallow waters and living on fish, frogs, etc., as the crane, heron, stork, shoebill, ibis, and flamingo.

3. British. any of various ground-nesting shorebirds of small to moderate size, as the gull, tern, skimmer, phalarope, and plover.

4. waders, high, waterproof boots used for wading, as by fishermen, duck hunters, or laborers.

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wader British  

/ ˈweɪdə /

noun

1. a person or thing that wades

2. Also called: wading bird.  any of various long-legged birds, esp those of the order Ciconiiformes (herons, storks, etc), that live near water and feed on fish, etc

3. a Brit name for shore bird

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Etymology

Origin of wader

First recorded in 1665–75; wade + -er ¹

Example Sentences

“Now I don’t know who Faye Wader really is,” the insecure and secretive host thinks, “or what will become of her.”

From The Wall Street Journal • May 1, 2026

Old Weed Wader, Dick Hemore, begins to break out his blade baits every year when this condition starts. 

From Seattle Times • Nov. 16, 2014

Nevertheless, I recommend going at least as far as one of the bird hides at Wader Lake.

From Washington Post

For the Wader Take a high-quality dry sack and shrink it in the dryer and you might end up with something similar to the Aquapac line of waterproof cases.

From Time Magazine Archive

Suddenly the pompous voice of General Wader arose: "Most astonishing thing I ever heard of," said he.

From Romance of California Life by Habberton, John