ortolan
Americannoun
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an Old World bunting, Emberiza hortulana, esteemed as a table delicacy.
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the bobolink.
noun
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Also called: ortolan bunting. a brownish Old World bunting, Emberiza hortulana, regarded as a delicacy
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any of various other small birds eaten as delicacies, esp the bobolink
Etymology
Origin of ortolan
1520–30; < French < Provençal: literally, gardener (i.e., frequenting gardens) < Latin hortulānus, equivalent to hortul ( us ) little garden ( hort ( us ) garden + -ulus -ule ) + -ānus -an
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
I want to talk about the ortolan scene.
From Salon ● Feb. 9, 2024
For the film, we had to make an ortolan out of another bird.
From Salon ● Feb. 9, 2024
Each diner was presented with a sizzling roasted ortolan, a sparrow-like bird the size of a lemon.
From The Guardian ● Sep. 12, 2016
The ortolan, a seed-eating songbird that is little bigger than a child's hand, has been banned from restaurant menus in much of Europe since 1999.
From Reuters ● Sep. 16, 2014
There is a small bird called the ortolan, which is highly esteemed by the Italian gourmands.
From The Art of Stage Dancing The Story of a Beautiful and Profitable Profession by Ned Wayburn
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
