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

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

martlet

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 Frank W. Hutchins

The martlet indicates both swallow and martin, and in the arms of the Cornish Arundels the martlets must stand for “hirundels” or swallows.

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

The hedge-side beggar boasts a crest, Monsieur La Mothe: a martlet with three mullets in chief.

From The Justice of the King by Hamilton Drummond

In the winter-time they had their taffeta gowns of all colors, as above named, and those lined with the rich furrings of wolves, weasels, Calabrian martlet, sables, and other costly furs.

From The Best of the World's Classics, Restricted to Prose, Vol. VII (of X)—Continental Europe I by Henry Cabot Lodge

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

From Voices for the Speechless by Abraham Firth

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