aviary

[ey-vee-er-ee]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR aviary ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural a·vi·ar·ies.

a large cage or a house or enclosure in which birds are kept.

Origin of aviary

1570–80; < Latin aviārium a place where birds are kept, noun use of neuter of aviārius pertaining to birds. See avi-, -ary

Related formsa·vi·a·rist

[ey-vee-uh-rist] /ˈeɪ vi ə rɪst/, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for aviary

volary, columbary, birdhouse

Examples from the Web for aviary

Historical Examples of aviary

For a few moments there had been a noise as of an aviary in commotion in the adjoining room.
Fruitfulness
Emile Zola
I have seen them alive at Singapore in an aviary, and they are indeed gorgeous.
The Last Voyage
Lady (Annie Allnutt) Brassey
But the use to which I was ambitious to put my—or our—conservatory was that of an aviary.
The House
Eugene Field
One might have supposed one's self at an opera in listening to the voices in my aviary.
The Coming Race
Edward Bulwer Lytton
This remark brings us back to the aviary, and its general size.
Harper's Young People, May 25, 1880
Various

British Dictionary definitions for aviary

aviary

noun plural aviaries

a large enclosure in which birds are kept

Word Origin for aviary

C16: from Latin aviārium, from aviārius concerning birds, from avis bird

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

Word Origin and History for aviary

1570s, from Latin aviarium "place in which birds are kept," neuter of aviarius "of birds," from avis "bird," from PIE *awi- "bird" (cf. Sanskrit vih, Avestan vish "bird," Greek aietos "eagle").