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button quail

noun
  1. any of several birds of the family Turnicidae, of warmer parts of the Old World, resembling but not related to the true quail.Also called bustard quail, hemipode.
  2. the blue-breasted quail, Coturnix chinensis.
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Origin of button quail

First recorded in 1880–85
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for button quail

Historical Examples

  • You christened little Miss Demby the Button-quail, last cold weather; you know you did.

    The Day's Work, Volume 1

    Rudyard Kipling

  • So there's another heading for a game book here; that might begin with elephant and finish up with mouse-deer and button-quail.

British Dictionary definitions for button quail

button quail

noun
  1. any small quail-like terrestrial bird of the genus Turnix, such as T. sylvatica (striped button quail), occurring in tropical and subtropical regions of the Old World: family Turnicidae, order Gruiformes (cranes, rails, etc)Also called: hemipode
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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