redshank

[ red-shangk ]

/ ˈrɛdˌʃæŋk /

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noun

an Old World sandpiper, Tringa totanus, having red legs and feet.

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Origin of redshank

First recorded in 1515–25; red¹ + shank

Words nearby redshank

Red Scare, Red Sea, Red Sea, parting of the, red seaweed, red setter, redshank, red shanks, redshift, redshifted, redshirt, redshirting

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use redshank in a sentence

I have, however, a Redshank in full breeding plumage, killed in Guernsey as late as the 23rd of April.
Birds of Guernsey (1879)|Cecil Smith
Many birds would starve there, but the Redshank is quite happy, as Nature has fitted him for his life in such a place.
On the Seashore|R. Cadwallader Smith
No sooner does the Redshank spy you than he is up and, with a shrill whistle of alarm, flies quickly away.
On the Seashore|R. Cadwallader Smith
Kearton somewhere relates how he once induced a blackbird to sit on the eggs of a thrush, and a lapwing on those of a redshank.
Birds in the Calendar|Frederick G. Aflalo

The Redshank is a bird of frequent occurrence on all such parts of the coast as are suited to its habits.
British Birds in their Haunts|Rev. C. A. Johns

British Dictionary definitions for redshank (1 of 2)

redshank

/ (ˈrɛdˌʃæŋk) /

noun

either of two large common European sandpipers, Tringa totanus or T. erythropus (spotted redshank), having red legs

British Dictionary definitions for redshank (2 of 2)

red shank

noun

an annual polygonaceous plant, Polygonum persicaria, of N temperate regions, having red stems, narrow leaves, and oblong spikes of pink flowersAlso called: persicaria, lady's-thumb

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