egret

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

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.

Origin of egret

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

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use egret in a sentence

Most of them were large birds—hawks, egrets, and even peacocks—for spectacular visual effect as they took flight.
The Buddhist Business of Poaching Animals for Good Karma | Brendon Hong | December 28, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The island gives refuge to a variety of birds, from egrets to pelicans, which are in great danger as the oil comes ashore.
Voices From the Gulf | The Daily Beast | May 3, 2010 | THE DAILY BEAST
As the plumes of these birds are worth nearly their weight in gold, egrets have become extinct in some parts of the world.
A Bird Calendar for Northern India | Douglas Dewar
I noticed quantities of white egrets, which settled on the backs of the water buffaloes.
Wanderings Among South Sea Savages And in Borneo and the Philippines | H. Wilfrid Walker
I shot several of each kind of bird, plucking the fine plumes from the backs of the egrets.
Wanderings Among South Sea Savages And in Borneo and the Philippines | H. Wilfrid Walker

He has taken my sister up the creek—Bones says there are any number of egrets' nests there, and I believe he is right.
The Keepers of the King's Peace | Edgar Wallace
The egrets or ear feathers are tipped with blackish-brown, the inner webs being white varied with wood-brown.
The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction | Various

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 Ciconiiformes: See also aigrette

Origin of 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

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