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redbird

[red-burd]
See more synonyms for redbird on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. the cardinal, Cardinalis cardinalis.
  2. any of various other birds having red plumage, as the scarlet tanager.
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Origin of redbird

First recorded in 1660–70; red1 + bird
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for redbird

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • The redbird is singing in the tree, his plumage all the brighter for the winter's bleaching.

  • You cannot make a wren out of a redbird, even if you are the God of both.

  • Redbird wondered why pale eyes were so different and why they had so much power.

    Shaman

    Robert Shea

  • The snow was already halfway up Redbird's laced deerskin boots.

    Shaman

    Robert Shea

  • Redbird felt tears stream from her eyes—and freeze at once on her cheeks.

    Shaman

    Robert Shea

Word Origin and History for redbird

n.

mid-13c., a name for sundry red or partly red birds, including the common bullfinch and the scarlet tanager, but in U.S. especially the cardinal, from red (adj.1) + bird (n.).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper