oscine

[os-in, -ahyn]

See more synonyms for oscine on Thesaurus.com

adjective

of, belonging to, or pertaining to the suborder Oscines, of the order Passeriformes, comprising the songbirds that have highly developed vocal organs.

noun

an oscine bird.

Origin of oscine

1880–85, Americanism; < New Latin Oscines name of the suborder, equivalent to Latin oscin- (stem of oscen) songbird, orig. bird that gives omens by its cry (o(b)s-, variant of ob- ob- + -cin-, stem of -cen, noun derivative of canere to sing) + -es nominative plural noun suffix

Related formsnon·os·cine, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for oscine

lark, wren, canary, pipit, serin, oscine, vireo

British Dictionary definitions for oscine

oscine

adjective

of, relating to, or belonging to the Oscines, a suborder of passerine birds that includes most of the songbirds

Word Origin for oscine

C17: via New Latin from Latin oscen singing bird

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