pratincole

[prat-ing-kohl, prat-n-]

noun

1. any of several limicoline birds of the genus Glareola, of the Eastern Hemisphere, having a short bill, long, narrow, pointed wings, and a forked tail.

pratincole

/ ˈprætɪŋˌkəʊl, ˈpreɪ- /

noun

1. any of various swallow-like shore birds of the southern Old World genus Glareola and related genera, esp G. pratincola, having long pointed wings, short legs, and a short bill: family Glareolidae, order Charadriiformes

Word History and Origins

Origin of pratincole¹

< New Latin Pratincola (1756) genus name, equivalent to Latin prāt ( um ) meadow + incola inhabitant ( in- ², -colous )

Word History and Origins

Origin of pratincole¹

C18: from New Latin pratincola field-dwelling, from Latin prātum meadow + incola inhabitant

Example Sentences

I saw at a glance he was right, and jumping up, espied among the clamorous crowd of marsh-terns, avocets, stilts, pratincoles, and other birds overhead, a single pair of strangers—small, very long-necked gulls.

Read more on Project Gutenberg

During the gloaming the air has been alive with the darting forms of bats, terns, and pratincoles, of swifts and swallows, all busily hawking after insects or slow-flying beetles.

Read more on Project Gutenberg