kittiwake

[ kit-ee-weyk ]

/ ˈkɪt iˌweɪk /

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noun

either of two small, pearl-gray gulls of the genus Rissa, the black-legged R. tridactyla of the North Atlantic and the red-legged and red-billed R. brevirostris, of the Bering Sea, both nesting on narrow cliff ledges and having a rudimentary hind toe.

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Origin of kittiwake

First recorded in 1655–65; imitative

Words nearby kittiwake

kitten heel, kittenish, kitten moth, Kittie, Kittikachorn, kittiwake, kittle, Kitt Peak National Observatory, Kittredge, kitty, kitty-cornered

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use kittiwake in a sentence

The nest of the Kittiwake is situated on ledges of maritime cliffs round our coast, and at the Farne Islands.
Birds' Nests, Eggs and Egg-Collecting|Richard Kearton
This Kittiwake is very much like the former, excepting that the legs are bright red, the mantle is darker and the bill shorter.
Western Bird Guide|Chester A. (Chester Albert) Reed, Harry F. Harvey, and Rex I. Brasher
The Kittiwake is sixteen inches in length, has a pearly gray mantle, black tips to the primaries, and remainder of plumage white.
The Bird Book|Chester A. Reed
The young of the Kittiwake, previous to its first moult, is sometimes called the Tarrock.
British Birds in their Haunts|Rev. C. A. Johns

The Kittiwake Gull takes its name from the cry with which in the breeding season it assails any intruder on its domain.
British Birds in their Haunts|Rev. C. A. Johns

British Dictionary definitions for kittiwake

kittiwake

/ (ˈkɪtɪˌweɪk) /

noun

either of two oceanic gulls of the genus Rissa, esp R. tridactyla, having a white plumage with pale grey black-tipped wings and a square-cut tail

Word Origin for kittiwake

C17: of imitative origin

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