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• robin
  robin

  noun

  any of several small Old World birds having a red or reddish breast, especially Erithacus rubecula, of Europe.
• Robin
  Robin

  noun

  a male or female given name: derived from Robert.

robin

¹ American  

[rob-in] / ˈrɒb ɪn /

noun

• robins
  plural

1. any of several small Old World birds having a red or reddish breast, especially Erithacus rubecula, of Europe.

2. a large American thrush, Turdus migratorius, having a chestnut-red breast and abdomen.

3. any of several similar thrushes of the New World tropics, not necessarily having reddish underparts, as T. grayi clay-colored robin, of Mexico and Central America.

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Robin ² American  

[rob-in] / ˈrɒb ɪn /

noun

1. a male or female given name: derived from Robert.

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robin British  

/ ˈrɒbɪn /

noun

1. Also called: robin redbreast.  a small Old World songbird, Erithacus rubecula , related to the thrushes: family Muscicapidae . The male has a brown back, orange-red breast and face, and grey underparts

2. a North American thrush, Turdus migratorius , similar to but larger than the Old World robin

3. any of various similar birds having a reddish breast

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• robins
  plural

Etymology

Origin of robin

First recorded in 1540–50; short for robin redbreast

Explanation

The sweet-sounding, red-chested birds that symbolize the beginning of spring are robins. There are actually many different birds called robins, and while most share a reddish-orange breast, they're actually distantly related to each other. In the U.S., the bird we think of as a robin is officially the American robin, a kind of thrush. It's the most common land bird in North America, and it's famous for laying eggs very early in the spring — and singing at the crack of dawn. The robin's most deadly predator is the domesticated cat.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

robin Robin robins

We were reading “The Secret Garden” out loud, round robin, and I was bored.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

Not even from dreaded rival Canada, which was missing injured star Marie-Philip Poulin, and fell to Team USA 5-0 in the opening round robin.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 13, 2026

It's the final day of the curling round robin stage, with the semi-final line-ups to be determined and – in the case of the men's competition – played on the same day.

From BBC ● Feb. 2, 2026

Next February's 75th NBA All-Star Game will feature a three-team round robin tournament with two teams of United States players and a World squad of global talent, the league announced on Tuesday.

From Barron's ● Nov. 12, 2025

“Yes, madam. The robin was perky today. He sang quite a trill against one of the blackbirds who was greedy.”

From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White

Robin Mills, chief executive of Dubai-based consulting firm Qamar Energy, said that he expects Saudi Arabia to repair any damage relatively quickly but that there is the risk of repeat attacks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026

Robin Brooks, senior economist at the Brookings Institution, thinks the “current strengthening of the yen has all the signs of hidden intervention,” meaning that authorities may have intervened more than they publicly have let on.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 8, 2026

Actor Richard O'Sullivan, whose roles included Robin Tripp in 1970s TV sitcoms Man About the House and Robin's Nest, has died aged 82.

From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026

It was the Grateful Dead’s retreat, Robin Williams’ launchpad, and the solid ground upon which Philip K. Dick questioned reality.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026

Robin Hood is at his heels, jumping and barking.

From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan

Donovan has taken full advantage of the home’s surroundings, regularly sharing videos of the garden on his Instagram account, including a January 2023 clip of a flock of robins visiting a birdbath on the grounds.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 10, 2026

Market hunters used shotguns, nets and traps to fill traincars with passenger pigeons—as well as robins, woodpeckers, blackbirds and orioles.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 23, 2026

Blackbirds and robins are usually the first to sing, external, followed by wrens, thrushes, and warblers as the light increases.

From BBC ● Dec. 27, 2025

Even when burying capsules that contained only a single chemical, the sea robins could quickly find them.

From Salon ● Sep. 27, 2024

The following spring the migrating robins began to return to the campus as usual.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson