pavonine

American  

[pav-uh-nahyn, -nin] / ˈpæv əˌnaɪn, -nɪn /

adjective

1. of or like a peacock.

2. resembling the feathers of a peacock, as in coloring.

---

pavonine British  

/ ˈpævəˌnaɪn /

adjective

1. of or resembling a peacock or the colours, design, or iridescence of a peacock's tail

---

Etymology

Origin of pavonine

1650–60; < Latin pāvōnīnus, derivative of pāvō (stem pāvōn- ) peacock; see -ine ¹

Explanation

Pavonine means being similar to a peacock, like your sister's wonderfully iridescent pavonine Halloween costume. This adjective can describe anything that reminds you of the large, colorful, showy birds: "My friend put on a pavonine display at school today, strutting around in his fancy new outfit." It's most often used for things that resemble a peacock's brilliant, lustrous feathers, though, like the pavonine feathers of a smaller, less impressive bird. The Latin pavo, "peacock," is the root of pavonine.

Example Sentences

The snapshots are affectionate and admiring, and the contradictions in them can give you whiplash — until the end Avedon was pavonine and recessive, autocratic and inhibited, everyone’s best friend and utterly inscrutable.

From New York Times • Dec. 12, 2017

If that turns you off, it's easy to dismiss Revolution as little more than a narcissism trip – a pavonine linguistic display with a deficit of real substance.

From The Guardian • Oct. 23, 2014

Scarce one of us domestic birds but imitates the lanky, pavonine strut, and shrill, genteel scream.

From The Book of Snobs by Thackeray, William Makepeace