kingfisher
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of kingfisher
1400–50; king + fisher; replacing king's fisher, late Middle English kinges fisher
Explanation
A kingfisher is a colorful bird that catches fish by diving dramatically into the water. The Australian kookaburra is the largest species of kingfisher. Among about 90 different kingfisher species, most have brilliant blue feathers and a very long, pointed bill. These bright birds are mainly found in tropical climates near rivers and other bodies of water, making fish and crustaceans the major part of their diet. Etymologists know the bird's original name was king's fisher (with the fisher part being self-explanatory), but the rest of the word's history is unknown.
Vocabulary lists containing kingfisher
Birds, Birds, Birds, List 2
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Summer of the Monkeys
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Dragon's Gate
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Highlights of 2023 included capturing images of the aurora on the Long Mynd in Shropshire and photographing a breeding kingfisher in a local river.
From BBC • Dec. 30, 2023
"To get all the kingfisher DNA, we used specimens in the Field Museum's collections," says Eliason, who works in the Field's Grainger Bioinformatics Center and Negaunee Integrative Research Center.
From Science Daily • Oct. 24, 2023
Along the way travelers might glimpse a greater flamingo, a painted stork or a pied kingfisher.
From New York Times • Sep. 27, 2022
He began teaching kids about his craft and got ideas from birds he spotted by day: an osprey, a kingfisher, a heron, Canada geese.
From Seattle Times • Jul. 27, 2022
For a moment, I remembered that day, so long ago, when Hannie and I saw the kingfisher.
From "Code Name Kingfisher" by Liz Kessler
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
