flamingo

[fluh-ming-goh]

noun, plural fla·min·gos, fla·min·goes.

any of several aquatic birds of the family Phoenicopteridae, having very long legs and neck, webbed feet, a bill bent downward at the tip, and pinkish to scarlet plumage.

Origin of flamingo

1555–65; compare Portuguese flamengo, Spanish flamenco literally, Fleming (cf. flamenco); apparently originally a jocular name, from the conventional Romance image of the Flemish as ruddy-complexioned

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

Examples from the Web for flamingo

Contemporary Examples of flamingo

The sex symbol and ‘Flamingo Road’ star knows more about Syria and science than you do—and she can handle herself in war zones.
Morgan Fairchild: Badass Foreign Policy Wonk
Asawin Suebsaeng
October 20, 2014
Marie Osmond, who performs at the Flamingo with her brother Donny, describes what it was like trick-or-treating last Halloween.
Can Celine Dion Save Vegas?
Tony Doukopil, Ramin Setoodeh
March 13, 2011

Historical Examples of flamingo

The messenger boy, too, stopped to stare at the Tasmanian flamingo.
Philo Gubb Correspondence-School Detective
Ellis Parker Butler
The flamingo, in large flocks, visits the New World as well as the Old.
The Western World
W.H.G. Kingston
"I've got one I wouldn't sell for $1,000," said the Flamingo.
Andiron Tales
John Kendrick Bangs
"It doesn't pay to associate with conductors," said the Flamingo.
Andiron Tales
John Kendrick Bangs
"Then hurry and climb up on my shoulders here," the Flamingo cried.
Andiron Tales
John Kendrick Bangs

British Dictionary definitions for flamingo

flamingo

noun plural -gos or -goes

any large wading bird of the family Phoenicopteridae, having a pink-and-red plumage and downward-bent bill and inhabiting brackish lakes: order Ciconiiformes
1. a reddish-orange colour
2. (as adjective)flamingo gloves

Word Origin for flamingo

C16: from Portuguese flamengo, from Provençal flamenc, from Latin flamma flame + Germanic suffix -ing denoting descent from or membership of; compare -ing ³

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

Word Origin and History for flamingo

1560s, from Portuguese flamengo, Spanish flamengo, literally "flame-colored" (cf. Greek phoinikopteros "flamingo," literally "red-feathered"), from Provençal flamenc, from flama "flame" (see flame (n.)) + Germanic suffix -enc "-ing, belonging to."