rainbird

American  

[reyn-burd] / ˈreɪnˌbɜrd /

noun

1. 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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rainbird British  

/ ˈreɪnˌbɜːd /

noun

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

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Etymology

Origin of rainbird

First recorded in 1910–15; rain + bird

Example Sentences

The parrot, macaw and toucan are found in all parts; the crow, blackbird, Mexican jay, ricebird, swallow, rainbird, wood-pecker, humming-bird and trogon are also widely distributed.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 6 "Celtes, Konrad" to "Ceramics" by Various

What the cloudy asters told the hillside, My lone rainbird in the dusk resumes.

From Behind the Arras A Book of the Unseen by Meteyard, Thomas Buford

The snow-melted torrents are brawling; The hills, orange-misted and blue, Are touched with the voice of the rainbird Unsullied and new.

From More Songs From Vagabondia by Carman, Bliss

Now is the time of year When all the flutes begin,— The redwing bold and clear, The rainbird far and thin.

From Later Poems by Carman, Bliss