bulbul
[boo l-boo l]
- a songbird often mentioned in Persian poetry, regarded as being a nightingale.
- any of several oscine birds of the family Pycnonotidae, of the Old World tropics.
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Origin of bulbul
Borrowed into English from Persian around 1775–85
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for bulbul
Contemporary Examples of bulbul
He could have said "bulbul," the word little Israeli kids use, but he didn't—he "confused" it.
Historical Examples of bulbul
Don't you remember the grand Oriental ballet of the "Bulbul and the Peri?"
The Wolves and the LambWilliam Makepeace Thackeray
Miss Clapperclaw says Bulbul is evidently smitten, and Clara too.
The Christmas BooksWilliam Makepeace Thackeray
Bulbul's dinners are, I own, very good; his pilaffs and curries excellent.
The Christmas BooksWilliam Makepeace Thackeray
Its crest is pointed and its cheeks are white like those of an Otocompsa bulbul.
Birds of the Indian HillsDouglas Dewar
A speckled black-and-white woodpecker about the size of a bulbul.
Birds of the Indian HillsDouglas Dewar
bulbul
- any songbird of the family Pycnonotidae of tropical Africa and Asia, having brown plumage and, in many species, a distinct crest
- a songbird, taken to be the nightingale, often mentioned in Persian poetry
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Word Origin for bulbul
C18: via Persian from Arabic
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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