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red-headed woodpecker

American  

noun

  1. a black and white North American woodpecker, Melanerpes erythrocephalus, having a red head and neck.


Etymology

Origin of red-headed woodpecker

An Americanism dating back to 1720–30

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.

See Examples For:

Keep your head on a swivel for a flash of color, and you just might see a yellow-billed cuckoo, green heron or red-headed woodpecker.

From Washington Post Sep. 15, 2022

A red-headed woodpecker works on a tree in Nebraska.

From National Geographic Nov. 5, 2016

Now, there’s a red-headed woodpecker making the thing swing, and cardinals dot the forest scrub with red coats, waiting until the bigger birds have their fill.

From "Please Ignore Vera Dietz" by A.S. King

"Hey Chris, bet you don't know the Latin name of the red-headed woodpecker."

From "The Westing Game" by Ellen Raskin

This was the brilliant cousin of the sapsucker, the red-headed woodpecker, whose vagaries I shall speak of a little later.

From Little Brothers of the Air by Miller, Olive Thorne

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