merganser

[ mer-gan-ser ]

noun,plural mer·gan·sers, (especially collectively) mer·gan·ser.

any of several fish-eating diving ducks of the subfamily Merginae, having a narrow bill hooked at the tip and serrated at the edges.

Origin of merganser

1745–55; <New Latin, equivalent to Latin merg(us) diver, a kind of water bird + ānsergoose

Also called fish duck.

Words Nearby merganser

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

How to use merganser in a sentence

The nesting of the hooded merganser is even more erratic than its occurrence.
Birds and All Nature, Vol. V, No. 3, March 1899 | Various
The habits of the Goosander and merganser are so much alike that further detail is unnecessary.
British Birds in their Haunts | Rev. C. A. Johns
The females and young birds of the Goosander and merganser are popularly called Dun-divers.
British Birds in their Haunts | Rev. C. A. Johns
The name merganser, that is, 'Diving Goose', has reference to the size of the bird and its habit of diving for its food.
British Birds in their Haunts | Rev. C. A. Johns
Spic′ūlum, a spicule; Spike′bill, a merganser, a sawbill: the marbled godwit.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements) | Various

British Dictionary definitions for merganser

merganser

/ (mɜːˈɡænsə) /

nounplural -sers or -ser

any of several typically crested large marine diving ducks of the genus Mergus, having a long slender hooked bill with serrated edges: Also called: sawbill See also goosander

Origin of merganser

C18: from New Latin, from Latin mergus waterfowl, from mergere to plunge + anser goose

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

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