purple martin
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of purple martin
An Americanism dating back to 1735–45
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.
Before he even parked, Prum was calling out the names of birds he glimpsed or heard through the car window: osprey, purple martin, red-winged blackbird.
From New York Times • Jan. 9, 2019
The purple martin is a large, broad-winged swallow of sumptuous royal blue with a gurgling liquid song.
From The Guardian • Jul. 27, 2013
I don't know how stupid a man can get, but when he can't tell a purple martin from a starling that's got to be getting close to the record.
From Time Magazine Archive
Not even the little house wren has adapted itself so quickly to civilised men's homes, as the swift and purple martin.
From Birds Every Child Should Know by Blanchan, Neltje
The purple martin belongs to this family; it is common in the South but rare in the Northern States.
From Endurance Test or, How Clear Grit Won the Day by Douglas, Alan
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.
