gier-eagle

American  

[jeer-ee-guhl] / ˈdʒɪərˌi gəl /

noun

1. a bird, probably the Egyptian vulture, regarded as unclean in the Bible.

---

Etymology

Origin of gier-eagle

First recorded in 1605–15; gier (from German Geier “vulture”) + eagle

Example Sentences

"Ask the gier-eagle why she stoops at once Into the vast and unexplored abyss, What full-grown power informs her from the first, Why she not marvels, strenuously beating The silent boundless regions of the sky."

From Life of Robert Browning by Sharp, William

Strong is the lion—like a coal His eyeball,—like a bastion's mole     His chest against the foes: Strong, the gier-eagle on his sail; Strong against tide th' enormous whale     Emerges as he goes.

From Bulchevy's Book of English Verse by Quiller-Couch, Arthur Thomas, Sir

Strong is the lion—like a coal His eyeball—like a bastion's mole   His chest against the foes: Strong the gier-eagle on his sail; Strong against tide the enormous whale   Emerges as he goes.

From Bible Stories and Religious Classics by Wells, Philip P.