huia

[ hoo-yuh ]

/ ˈhu yə /

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noun

an apparently extinct, crowlike bird, Heteralocha acutirostris, of New Zealand, noted for the completely different bill shapes of the male and female.

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Origin of huia

First recorded in 1835–45, huia is from the Maori word hūia

Words nearby huia

huh, Hu Han-min, Huhehot, huhu, hui, huia, Huidobro, Huila, huipil, huisache, Hui Tsung

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use huia in a sentence

While you are still in the act of wavering the son of the house says, "Try a little huia."
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 159, October 6, 1920|Various
Poor Huia grew into a splendid and talented youth, but was disabled by an accident while diving.
Fifty-One Years of Victorian Life|Margaret Elizabeth Leigh Child-Villiers, Countess of Jersey

British Dictionary definitions for huia

huia

/ (ˈhʊɪjə) /

noun

an extinct bird of New Zealand, Heteralocha acutirostris, prized by early Māoris for its distinctive tail feathers

Word Origin for huia

Māori

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