falcon

American  

[fawl-kuhn, fal-, faw-kuhn] / ˈfɔl kən, ˈfæl-, ˈfɔ kən /

noun

1. any of several birds of prey of the family Falconidae, especially of the genus Falco, usually distinguished by long, pointed wings, a hooked beak with a toothlike notch on each side of the upper bill, and swift, agile flight, typically diving to seize prey: some falcon species are close to extinction.

2. Falconry.

   1. the female gyrfalcon.

   2. falcon-gentle.

   3. any bird of prey trained for use in falconry.

3. a small, light cannon in use from the 15th to the 17th century.

4. Military. Falcon, a family of air-to-air guided missiles, some of them capable of carrying nuclear warheads.

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falcon British  

/ ˈfɔːkən, ˈfɔːlkən /

noun

1. any diurnal bird of prey of the family Falconidae , esp any of the genus Falco (gyrfalcon, peregrine falcon, etc), typically having pointed wings and a long tail

2. 1. any of these or related birds, trained to hunt small game

   2. the female of such a bird Compare tercel

3. a light-medium cannon used from the 15th to 17th centuries

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• falconoid
  adjective
• falconine
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of falcon

First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English fauco(u)n, falcon, from Anglo-French, Old French faucon, from Late Latin falcōn- (stem of falcō ) “hawk” (said to be derivative of falx, stem falc- “sickle,” referring to the sicklelike talons)

Explanation

A falcon is a large hunting bird. Falcons are strong, with long wingspans and very sharp eyesight — not to mention their very sharp beaks. Falcons use their powerful wings and vision to spot prey while flying and swoop down on it. They can fly rapidly and change direction very quickly. A falcon is a type of raptor, birds of prey that include eagles and vultures. The peregrine falcon, is the fastest-moving of all animals. The Latin root of falcon is probably falx, "curved blade or sickle," which describes the shape of the bird's talons and beak.

Example Sentences

It took more than a year for SpaceX to resume flights from a launchpad at Cape Canaveral after a preflight explosion destroyed a Falcon 9 rocket in 2016.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 2, 2026

It already handles more than half of the world’s orbital launches with its Falcon 9 rocket.

From Barron's • May 22, 2026

SpaceX, of course, pioneered reusable rockets, but only the lower stage of the Falcon 9 is reused.

From Barron's • May 21, 2026

The new version of Starship is designed to carry 100 metric tons to low-Earth orbit, compared with about 23 metric tons for the company’s workhorse Falcon 9 vehicle.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 21, 2026

She ran down the hall to the front room, planning to do a search for The Maltese Falcon on Book Scavenger, but stopped short when she saw Matthew on the family computer.

From "Book Scavenger" by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman