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house sparrow

noun
  1. a small, hardy, buffy-brown and gray bird, Passer domesticus, of Europe, introduced into America, Australia, etc.
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Origin of house sparrow

First recorded in 1665–75
Also called English sparrow.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for house sparrow

Historical Examples

  • The house-sparrow, like the house-crow, is a bird of the plains rather than of the hills.

    Birds of the Indian Hills

    Douglas Dewar

  • The remainder of the plumage is very like that of the house-sparrow.

  • The house-sparrow and the bullfinch are the chief, but not the only, enemies.

  • It is not at all the same kind of bird as the house-sparrow, for it is one of the warblers.

    Woodside

    Caroline Hadley

  • Innumerable instances in all Orders could be given; it will suffice to call to mind the common pheasant, duck, and house-sparrow.

British Dictionary definitions for house sparrow

house sparrow

noun
  1. a small Eurasian weaverbird, Passer domesticus, now established in North America and Australia. It has a brown streaked plumage with grey underpartsAlso called (US): English sparrow
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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