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hoatzin

[hoh-at-sin, waht-sin]

noun

  1. a blue-faced, crested bird, Opisthocomus hoazin, of the Amazon and Orinoco forests, having as a nestling a large, temporary claw on the second and third digits of the forelimb, for climbing among the tree branches.



hoatzin

/ həʊˈætsɪn /

noun

  1. a unique South American gallinaceous bird, Opisthocomus hoazin, with a brownish plumage, a very small crested head, and clawed wing digits in the young: family Opisthocomidae

“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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Word History and Origins

Origin of hoatzin1

1655–65; ≪ Nahuatl huāctzīn, huāhtzīn name for several hen-sized birds of the Valley of Mexico, apparently applied indiscriminately by early naturalists to similar New World birds
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Word History and Origins

Origin of hoatzin1

C17: from American Spanish, from Nahuatl uatzin pheasant
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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

After another bird-filled stop, where we saw our first turkey-like hoatzin — whose ungainly size and clumsy movements made us all laugh — we were transferred into two smaller canoes.

Read more on New York Times

Scientists were surprised to learn that some hoatzin still use their claws to climb and move around.

Read more on Science Magazine

A hoatzin, a primitive bird like a living archaeopteryx, called in the distance as we baited hand-lines with — what else? — gristly chunks of local beef.

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One animal they were eager to see was the hoatzin, which is a “punk-rock looking bird,” he said, because of its mohawk.

Read more on Washington Times

Chickens share the most DNA with the first bird ancestor, closely followed by hoatzin and emu.

Read more on Scientific American

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