quail

¹ American  

[kweyl] / kweɪl /

noun

PLURAL

quails

PLURAL

quail

1. Also called true quail.  any of numerous gallinaceous birds, order Galliformes, classified as either Old World quails, within the pheasant family (Phasinidae), especially the genus Coturnix, or the distantly related New World quails, comprising their own family (Odontophoridae), including the genera Colinus, Callipepla, and Odontophorus : among the most familiar true quails are the Old World king quail and the New World bobwhite.

2. button quail.

3. Older Slang.  a woman or girl.

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quail ² American  

[kweyl] / kweɪl /

verb (used without object)

1. to lose heart or courage in difficulty or danger; shrink with fear.

   Synonyms:

   cower , blench , flinch , recoil

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quail ¹ British  

/ kweɪl /

noun

1. any small Old World gallinaceous game bird of the genus Coturnix and related genera, having a rounded body and small tail: family Phasianidae (pheasants)

2. any of various similar and related American birds, such as the bobwhite

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quail ² British  

/ kweɪl /

verb

1. (intr) to shrink back with fear; cower

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Related Words

See wince ¹.

Other Word Forms

• quaillike adjective
• unquailing adjective

Etymology

Origin of quail¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English quaille, quaylle, from Old French quaille, from Medieval Latin quaccola; imitative of its call

Origin of quail²

1400–50; late Middle English < Middle Dutch quelen, queilen

Example Sentences

An adept orator, he confessed a “quailing sensation” at the task that lay before him.

From Seattle Times

Though scientists don’t fully understand these light-sensing receptors, one team identified certain brain cells in quails that could directly detect light, according to a study published in 2014 in Current Biology.

From Scientific American

On the menu: quail stuffed with wild rice and white grapes.

From Washington Post

The 1931 law establishing the California valley quail as our state bird noted it was a game bird, indicating it was to be hunted for sport or food, he said.

From New York Times

Vow is hoping to sell its first product there - a cultivated Japanese quail meat - later this year.

From Washington Times