macaw

American  

[muh-kaw] / məˈkɔ /

noun

• macaws
  plural

1. any of various large, long-tailed parrots of tropical and subtropical America, noted for their brilliant plumage and distinctive light-colored facial patches: of the six macaw genera, Ara includes the most familiar and greatest number of species, while Cyanopsitta has just one species, C. spixii Spix's macaw, a small, blue macaw, now classified as possibly extinct in the wild.

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macaw British  

/ məˈkɔː /

noun

1. any large tropical American parrot of the genera Ara and Anodorhynchus, having a long tail and brilliant plumage

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• macaws
  plural

Etymology

Origin of macaw

First recorded in 1620–30; from Portuguese macao, macau, probably from macaúba from Tupi macahuba, equivalent to maca “palm” + ybá “tree”

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

macaw macaws

He bought an acre of his grandfather’s farmland with a $10,000 student loan, built a barn with an apartment and rescued a macaw named Cisco and umbrella cockatoo named Andrew to bring to children’s parties.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 2, 2026

There’s a naked guinea pig, a giant red macaw and an adorably chunky pit bull named Messy.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 23, 2025

Last year, two Spix’s macaw chicks were born in freedom — the first ones in decades— but they didn’t survive.

From Seattle Times ● May 28, 2024

Mango the macaw flew out of a window at the site in Great Barr, Sandwell, following a clap of thunder on Sunday.

From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2023

Known as French John, he carried away Dolley Madison’s bird, a prized macaw, and left her beloved pet safely at the French ambassador’s residence.

From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis

The two blue and yellow macaws, Peanuts and Coco, welcome staff with an "all right" and bid them "goodbye", while the galahs chatter incessantly in their enclosure.

From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026

Parrots and macaws that had outlived their owners squawked in a giant aviary.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 2, 2026

This region shelters not only migratory songbirds but also jaguars, tapirs, and scarlet macaws.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 22, 2025

This includes providing care for lions, tigers, gibbons, macaws, chimpanzees, parrots, goats, sheep, rabbits and reptiles, among other creatures.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 4, 2025

With that precaution they tried to postpone the necessity of having to eat macaws, whose blue flesh had a harsh and musky taste.

From "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez