martlet

American  

[mahrt-lit] / ˈmɑrt lɪt /

noun

1. British Dialect. a house martin.

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

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martlet British  

/ ˈmɑːtlɪt /

noun

1. an archaic name for a martin

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

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Etymology

Origin of martlet

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

Example Sentences

The younger sons of the eldest house to give these differences instead of the crescent, mullet, martlet, etc.:

From The Curiosities of Heraldry by Lower, Mark Antony

With a fine disregard of both ornithology and heraldry these birds have often been spoken of as martlets—the martlet appearing in the Byrd coat of arms.

From Virginia: the Old Dominion by Hutchins, Frank W.

Gates of wrought iron, with perhaps a martlet from the Byrd coat of arms above them, swung between tall pillars in the wall.

From Virginia: the Old Dominion by Hutchins, Frank W.

This guest of summer,          The temple-haunting martlet, does approve,          By his lov'd mansionry, that heaven's breath          Smells wooingly here.

From The Works of Samuel Johnson, Volume 05 Miscellaneous Pieces by Johnson, Samuel

Commoner than the eagle as a charge is the martlet, a humbler bird which is never found as the sole charge of a shield.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 3 "Helmont, Jean" to "Hernosand" by Various