chuck-will's-widow

[chuhk-wilz-wid-oh]

noun

a goatsucker, Caprimulgus carolinensis, of the southern U.S., resembling the whippoorwill but larger.

Origin of chuck-will's-widow

First recorded in 1785–95; fanciful representation of its incessant call

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for chuck-will's-widow

chuck-will's-widow

noun

a large North American nightjar, Caprimulgus carolinensis, similar to the whippoorwill

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