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blue jay

American

noun

a common, crested jay, Cyanocitta cristata, of eastern North America, having a bright blue back and a gray breast.

blue jay British

noun

a common North American jay, Cyanocitta cristata , having bright blue plumage with greyish-white underparts

"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

Etymology

Origin of blue jay

An Americanism dating back to 1700–10

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.

The UC study found that male spiders become motionless and "freeze" when a blue jay calls nearby.

From Science Daily • Jan. 17, 2024

Another loudmouth, the blue jay, has a particular taste for acorns, which inspired one of Strassmann’s slow-birder exercises: Go look for acorns beneath an oak in your garden or park.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 29, 2022

I was named Jaylen after a basketball player, but I tell people I was named after the blue jay.

From New York Times • Oct. 22, 2022

When the crow settled on a roof nearby, an adult blue jay sat a few yards away squawking miserably.

From Washington Post • May 30, 2022

A blue jay swooped in front of them and started Joe Joe jabbering.

From "Out of Darkness" by Ashley Hope Pérez

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023