rainbird

[ reyn-burd ]

/ ˈreɪnˌbɜrd /

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noun

any of several birds, especially the black-billed cuckoo (Coccyzus erythropthalmus) and the yellow-billed cuckoo (C. americanus), that are said to call frequently before a rainstorm.

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Origin of rainbird

First recorded in 1910–15; rain + bird

Words nearby rainbird

railwayman, raiment, Raimondi, rain, rainband, rainbird, rainbow, rainbow bird, Rainbow Bridge, rainbow cactus, rainbow-collar

How to use rainbird in a sentence

Rainbird is a local name for the green woodpecker, but as an East-Anglian name it is most likely an imitative form of Fr.
The Romance of Names|Ernest Weekley
Robin Redforth was united, with similar ceremonies, to Alice Rainbird.
Holiday Romance|Charles Dickens

British Dictionary definitions for rainbird

rainbird

/ (ˈreɪnˌbɜːd) /

noun

any of various birds, such as (in Britain) the green woodpecker, whose cry is supposed to portend rain

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