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raven

1 American  
[rey-vuhn] / ˈreɪ vən /

noun

  1. any of several large, corvine birds having lustrous, black plumage and a loud, harsh call, especially the common raven, Corvus corax, of both the New World and the Old World.

  2. Raven, the divine culture hero and trickster of the North Pacific Coast Indians.

  3. Astronomy. Raven, the constellation Corvus.

adjective

  1. lustrous black.

    raven locks of hair.
raven 2 American  
[rav-uhn] / ˈræv ən /
Also ravin

verb (used without object)

  1. to seek plunder or prey.

  2. to eat or feed voraciously or greedily.

    to raven like an animal.

  3. to have a ravenous appetite.

verb (used with object)

  1. to seize as spoil or prey.

  2. to devour voraciously.

noun

  1. rapine; robbery.

  2. plunder or prey.

raven 1 British  
/ ˈreɪvən /

noun

  1. a large passerine bird, Corvus corax , having a large straight bill, long wedge-shaped tail, and black plumage: family Corvidae (crows). It has a hoarse croaking cry

    1. a shiny black colour

    2. ( as adjective )

      raven hair
"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
raven 2 British  
/ ˈrævən /

verb

  1. to seize or seek (plunder, prey, etc)

  2. to eat (something) voraciously or greedily; be ravenous in eating

"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
Raven 3 British  
/ ˈreɪvən /

noun

  1. a traditional trickster hero among the native peoples of the Canadian Pacific Northwest

"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

Other Word Forms

  • ravener noun
  • ravenlike adjective

Etymology

Origin of raven1

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English hrǣfn, hrefn; cognate with German Rabe, Old Norse hrafn

Origin of raven2

First recorded in 1485–95; earlier ravine, from Middle French raviner, ultimately from Latin rapīna “plunder, rapine”; rapine

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.

In addition to the raven data, the team analyzed movement patterns from 20 collared wolves.

From Science Daily • Mar. 19, 2026

They focused on winter, when ravens most often interact with wolves, recording raven locations every 30 minutes and wolf locations every hour.

From Science Daily • Mar. 19, 2026

A dead raven floated on the water’s surface.

From Salon • Dec. 4, 2025

Greater controls on raven populations have previously been introduced in Skye and Argyll.

From BBC • May 27, 2025

The raven caws at it from its perch in the balcony.

From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern

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.