egret

[ ee-grit, eg-rit, ee-gret, ee-gret ]

/ ˈi grɪt, ˈɛg rɪt, iˈgrɛt, ˈi grɛt /

Save This Word!

noun

any of several usually white herons that grow long, graceful plumes during the breeding season, as Egretta garzetta(little egret ), of the Old World.

aigrette.

QUIZ

SHALL WE PLAY A "SHALL" VS. "SHOULD" CHALLENGE?

Should you take this quiz on “shall” versus “should”? It should prove to be a quick challenge!

Question 1 of 6

Which form is used to state an obligation or duty someone has?

shall

should

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of egret

1400–50; late Middle English egret(e) <Anglo-French egret (compare Middle French égreste,aigrette), alteration (with -on exchanged for -et-et) of dialectal Old French aigron<Germanic; see heron

Words nearby egret

EGR, egregious, egress, egression, egressive, egret, Egypt, Egyptiac, Egyptian, Egyptian calendar, Egyptian clover

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use egret in a sentence

The egret also has a longer tail than the macaque, in proportion to the length of its body.
Buffon's Natural History. Volume IX (of 10)|Georges Louis Leclerc de Buffon
The macaque and the egret, appeared to us so similar, that we presumed them to be of one and the same species.
Buffon's Natural History. Volume IX (of 10)|Georges Louis Leclerc de Buffon
Not to let them all escape, I aimed at a beautiful egret with white plumage, and to my great delight down it fell.
In the Wilds of Florida|W.H.G. Kingston
About the pools near our camp we saw the little white egret; the snowy heron had been common for some days.
Early Western Travels 1748-1846, Volume XVI|Various

The various species of egret and the paddy bird all assume their nuptial plumes in May.
A Bird Calendar for Northern India|Douglas Dewar

British Dictionary definitions for egret

egret

/ (ˈiːɡrɪt) /

noun

any of various wading birds of the genera Egretta, Hydranassa, etc, that are similar to herons but usually have a white plumage and, in the breeding season, long feathery plumes: family Ardeidae, order CiconiiformesSee also aigrette

Word Origin for egret

C15: from Old French aigrette, from Old Provençal aigreta, from aigron heron, of Germanic origin; compare Old High German heigaro heron

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