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

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Etymology

Origin of hummingbird

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

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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

The hummingbird hawk moth, known for its furry grey body, orange hindwings and long proboscis, migrates to the UK from southern Europe and north Africa in the summer months.

From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026

That is more than 200 times heavier than the bee hummingbird, the smallest bird in the world, which weighs only 1.75 grams.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 9, 2026

The film cuts to a hummingbird sipping nectar from a flower on a cactus, a sea turtle floating over a coral reef, pink flamingos on a green lake, a snowflake, a butterfly.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 16, 2026

A quest to photograph every species of hummingbird.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 28, 2025

“The hummingbird is small, fast. It lives on flowers.”

From "The Ugly One" by Leanne Statland Ellis

It’s a good way not to think about the inevitability of the clouds and cold returning, and to enjoy hummingbirds and other winged neighbors up close instead of through a clammy windowpane.

From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026

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

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 21, 2026

“I can see the palm trees moving back and forth and the hummingbirds in the morning,” she says.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 17, 2025

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

Her hands would be hummingbirds of hard black sounds, her feet supple against the floorboards of the night.

From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García

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