Dictionary.com
definitions
  • synonyms

Arctic tern

or arctic tern

noun
  1. a tern, Sterna paradisaea, resembling the common tern, that breeds in arctic and north temperate regions and winters in antarctic regions.
Show More

Origin of Arctic tern

First recorded in 1880–85
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
British Dictionary definitions for arctic tern

arctic tern

noun
  1. a black-capped tern, Sterna paradisea, that breeds in the Arctic and then migrates as far south as the Antarctic
Show More
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012