avadavat
[ av-uh-duh-vat ]
/ ˈæv ə dəˌvæt /
noun
a waxbill, Estrilda amandava, native to Asia, having in the male scarlet plumage with white dots on the sides and breast: raised as a cage bird.
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Also am·a·da·vat [am-uh-duh-vat] /ˌæm ə dəˈvæt/ .
Origin of avadavat
First recorded in 1770–80; earlier amaduvad, after Amidavad, a 17th century name (perhaps from Portuguese ) for Ahmedabad, in Gujarat, from where the birds were first exported
Words nearby avadavat
auxotonic, auxotroph, auxotrophic, Av, ava, avadavat, avail, available, available light, avail oneself of, avalanche
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
Example sentences from the Web for avadavat
A popular proverb says the housewife keeps the parrot, the lover keeps the avadavat, and the thief keeps pigeons.
Beast and Man in India|John Lockwood KiplingPerhaps the most attractive of small foreign birds is the avadavat, a tiny, perky little soldier.
What Shall We Do Now?: Five Hundred Games and Pastimes|Dorothy Canfield Fisher
British Dictionary definitions for avadavat
avadavat
amadavat (ˌæmədəˈvæt)
/ (ˌævədəˈvæt) /
noun
either of two Asian weaverbirds of the genus Estrilda, esp E. amandava, having a red plumage: often kept as cagebirds
Word Origin for avadavat
C18: from Ahmadabad, Indian city from which these birds were brought to Europe
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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