bunting

¹ American  

[buhn-ting] / ˈbʌn tɪŋ /

noun

1. a coarse, open fabric of worsted or cotton for flags, signals, etc.

2. patriotic and festive decorations made from such cloth, or from paper, usually in the form of draperies, wide streamers, etc., in the colors of the national flag.

3. flags, especially a vessel's flags, collectively.

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bunting ² American  

[buhn-ting] / ˈbʌn tɪŋ /

noun

1. any of several small, chiefly seed-eating birds of the genera Emberiza, Passerina, and Plectrophenax.

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bunting ³ American  

[buhn-ting] / ˈbʌn tɪŋ /

noun

1. a hooded sleeping garment for infants.

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bunting ¹ British  

/ ˈbʌntɪŋ /

noun

1. a coarse, loosely woven cotton fabric used for flags, etc

2. decorative flags, pennants, and streamers

3. flags collectively, esp those of a boat

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Bunting ² British  

/ ˈbʌntɪŋ /

noun

1. Basil . 1900–85, British poet, author of Briggflatts (1966)

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bunting ³ British  

/ ˈbʌntɪŋ /

noun

1. any of numerous seed-eating songbirds of the families Fringillidae (finches, etc) or Emberizidae , esp those of the genera Emberiza of the Old World and Passerina of North America. They all have short stout bills

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Etymology

Origin of bunting¹

First recorded in 1735–45; origin uncertain; perhaps originally “cloth for sifting,” hence the verb bunt “to sift,” from Middle English bonten + -ing ¹

Origin of bunting²

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English bunting, bounting, buntyle; further origin unknown

Origin of bunting³

First recorded in 1920–25; special use of bunting ¹

Related Words

• streamer