avian
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of avian
Explanation
Anything avian relates to birds. Avian flu is the bird flu, which birds can pass to humans. Someone who flies a plane is an aviator, and that may help you remember that avian things have to do with birds. Feathers are part of avian anatomy. Laying eggs is the avian method of reproduction. Bird-watchers are avian experts who know how to tell birds apart. Ornithologists are also avian experts: they’re scientists who study birds.
Vocabulary lists containing avian
Words of a Feather: Unflappable Avian Vocabulary
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More Animal Adjectives
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This Week in Words: August 25 - 31, 2018
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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.
Thousands took to social media to express their condolences and praise the avian matriarch.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
As avian flu spread like wildfire through the industry, poultry farmers were forced to cull 26 million birds, leading prices to skyrocket.
From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026
He was Sam the Eagle, our national bird transformed by a Disney artist, and to some eyes bearing a slight resemblance to an earlier Disney avian character, a parrot.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 6, 2026
The price of eggs shot up after millions of hens were culled following the UK's worst outbreak of avian flu between 2021 and 2023.
From BBC ● May 24, 2026
“Here you go, as many books as you could want on the topic of avian wonder.”
From "Sparrow" by Sarah Moon
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.
