bird of prey

American  

noun

1. any of numerous predacious, flesh-eating birds, as the eagles, hawks, kites, vultures, falcons, and owls, having a sharp, downwardly curved beak, talons, and, usually, soaring flight.

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bird of prey British  

noun

1. a bird, such as a hawk, eagle, or owl, that hunts and kills other animals, esp vertebrates, for food. It has strong talons and a sharp hooked bill

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Etymology

Origin of bird of prey

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bird of prey

Meanwhile the narrator’s financially devious husband appears as a vulture with “the brooding eye, the blood-tipped beak, the flabby folds of flesh” of a bird of prey.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 24, 2025

How do you share a film set with a notoriously fierce bird of prey?

From Barron's ● Oct. 13, 2025

The opening seconds of the first Test saw the pair of them setting the agenda, Curry with a monstrous hit on James Slipper and Beirne swooping like a bird of prey to win a penalty.

From BBC ● Aug. 2, 2025

“He is a mix between a bird of prey, like a peregrine falcon, with extremely streamlined shapes — of course a feline but also a Mexican salamander called an axolotl,” Otto says.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 14, 2025

“By golly,” he said and picked up a casting from a bird of prey.

From "Frightful's Mountain" by Jean Craighead George