hummingbird

American  

[huhm-ing-burd] / ˈhʌm ɪŋˌbɜrd /

noun

hummingbirds plural

1. a very small nectar-sipping New World bird of the family Trochilidae, characterized by the brilliant, iridescent plumage of the male, a slender bill, and narrow wings, the extremely rapid beating of which produces a humming sound: noted for their ability to hover and to fly upward, downward, and backward in a horizontal position.

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hummingbird British  

/ ˈhʌmɪŋˌbɜːd /

noun

1. any very small American bird of the family Trochilidae, having a brilliant iridescent plumage, long slender bill, and wings specialized for very powerful vibrating flight: order Apodiformes

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• hummingbirds
  plural

Etymology

Origin of hummingbird

An Americanism dating back to 1625–35; humming + bird

Explanation

A hummingbird is a tiny, brightly colored bird with wings that move so fast that you can hardly see them. You can attract hummingbirds to your yard with bright red flowers. Hummingbirds are so small that they could be mistaken for insects, and many species have brilliant feathers that glint and shine like metal. They're native to North and South America, and are the only birds that can fly backwards. Hummingbirds favor sweet nectar from native red-blossomed plants, but you can also leave sugar water in special feeders for them. Their name comes from the humming sound made by their fast-beating wings, which flap up to 80 times per second.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

hummingbird hummingbirds

At Huembo Lodge in Peru, a male marvellous spatuletail hummingbird fans its extraordinary tail as it feeds on flowers.

From BBC ● Mar. 25, 2026

When I see a hummingbird, I think,”‘You little critter. You know you have more than one life and I wish I could fly along with you.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 16, 2026

A quest to photograph every species of hummingbird.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 28, 2025

Laurie Hang Hutter swept her arms across a swath of open green space near the hummingbird garden in Kenneth Hahn State Recreation Area.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 10, 2025

Lindsey being a slim, hummingbird woman fresh out of Tennessee, who maintained a demented cheer that Cora couldn’t understand.

From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead

He trained hummingbirds to eat nectar out of his hand and posted the videos on Instagram.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 21, 2026

As bees and hummingbirds move from one flower to another, feeding on nectar while helping plants reproduce, they are also consuming something unexpected: small amounts of alcohol.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 25, 2026

Other studies have shown that bees use static forces to gather pollen, flower mites cling to hummingbirds using electrostatic attraction, and ballooning spiders rely on charged silk to drift across long distances.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 15, 2025

But the natural beauty of Leilani Way — a street with so many hummingbirds she kept having to buy larger feeders— are simply worth the risk.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 18, 2025

And finally, as I drift back to sleep, the screen of my mind fills with hummingbirds.

From "Counting by 7s" by Holly Goldberg Sloan