chipping sparrow

American  

noun

1. a small, North American sparrow, Spizella passerina, common in urban areas.

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chipping sparrow British  

noun

1. a common North American sparrow, Spizella passerina, having brown-and-grey plumage and a white eye stripe

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Etymology

Origin of chipping sparrow

An Americanism dating back to 1785–95; chip ² + -ing ²

Example Sentences

When a chipping sparrow trills, it could be that spring has arrived.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 26, 2020

“In 2015, I had great blue heron, red-bellied woodpecker, American crow, American robin, brown thrasher, northern parula, pine warbler, yellow-throated warbler, chipping sparrow, white-throated sparrow.”

From Slate • Apr. 12, 2019

Before the lens of noted Nature Photographer Porter, the common chipping sparrow looks as powerful and dramatic as the Owl-Magician in Swan Lake.

From Time Magazine Archive

In the chipping sparrow we may notice a hint of the spring change of dress which warblers and tanagers carry to such an extreme.

From The Log of the Sun A Chronicle of Nature's Year by Beebe, William

The gray purse of the oriole has begun to ravel at the edges and the haircloth cup of the chipping sparrow is already wind-distorted, but we shall find some housekeeping just begun.

From The Log of the Sun A Chronicle of Nature's Year by Beebe, William