killdeer

American  

[kil-deer] / ˈkɪlˌdɪər /

noun

1. an American plover, Charadrius vociferus, having two black bands around the upper breast.

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killdeer British  

/ ˈkɪlˌdɪə /

noun

1. a large brown-and-white North American plover, Charadrius vociferus, with two black breast bands and a noisy cry

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Etymology

Origin of killdeer

An Americanism dating back to 1725–35; imitative

Example Sentences

During a birdwatching stroll last spring, John Bates spotted a newly hatched killdeer chick.

From Washington Post • May 17, 2022

This connection of nature to architecture, of birds to buildings, forged in earnest once Wittman asked whether the Troths had “a few pictures” of the killdeer, Pat says.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 3, 2019

In fact, we can’t remember the last time we saw a killdeer.

From Washington Times • Jul. 23, 2019

There were plenty of species at street level as well: blue jays, cardinals, American crows, Eastern phoebes, killdeer, loggerhead shrike, kestrel falcons, bronzed cowbirds and, rarest of all, an open-ground woodpecker.

From New York Times • Mar. 22, 2012

At first the nesting killdeer screeched and whistled in alarm, flying frantically in all directions and repeatedly dive-bombing the mad sheepherder dressed in rags, who paid them no mind.

From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols