martlet

[ mahrt-lit ]

/ ˈmɑrt lɪt /

noun

British Dialect. a house martin.

Heraldry. a representation of a swallow close and without legs, used especially as the cadency mark of a fourth son.

Nearby words

Origin of martlet

1530–40; < Middle French martelet, variant of martinet; see martin, -et

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for martlet

Commoner than the eagle as a charge is the martlet, a humbler bird which is never found as the sole charge of a shield.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 3|Various
The Martlet is another example of the curious perpetuation in heraldry of the popular errors of natural history.
A Complete Guide to Heraldry|Arthur Charles Fox-Davies
Martlet and I both feel that we must have the north-west tower.
The Young Castellan|George Manville Fenn
The martlet is the appropriate “difference” or mark of cadency for the fourth son.
Fictitious & Symbolic Creatures in Art|John Vinycomb

At any rate, whether this be true or false, the martlet certainly is never represented in heraldry with feet.
A Complete Guide to Heraldry|Arthur Charles Fox-Davies

British Dictionary definitions for martlet

martlet

/ (ˈmɑːtlɪt) /

noun

an archaic name for a martin

heraldry a footless bird often found in coats of arms, standing for either a martin or a swallow

Word Origin for martlet

C16: from French martelet, variant of martinet, diminutive of martin

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