siskin

[sis-kin]

noun

1. any of several small, cardueline finches, especially Carduelis spinus, of Europe.

siskin

/ ˈsɪskɪn /

noun

1. a yellow-and-black Eurasian finch, Carduelis spinus

2. a North American finch, Spinus pinus, having a streaked yellowish-brown plumage

Word History and Origins

Origin of siskin¹

First recorded in 1555–65; from Middle Dutch sijsken, equivalent to sijs (from Middle Low German czītze, from Slavic; compare Sorbian cyž, Czech číž, Polish czyż “siskin,” ultimately imitative of the sound) + -ken diminutive suffix; -kin

Word History and Origins

Origin of siskin¹

C16: from Middle Dutch sīseken, from Middle Low German sīsek; related to Czech čižek, Russian chizh

Example Sentences

As of this writing, it’s logged 194 house finch visits, 83 California towhee drop-bys, 5 squirrel sorties and a lone pine siskin pop in.

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A pine siskin appears to react to the car noise by blasting out a call — see the thick red vertical smear about three-quarters of the way across the image — spanning many frequencies.

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Instead, we found a flock of house finches, another of pine siskins and a diminutive downy woodpecker.

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The most chaotic birds overall are probably the goldfinches and their cousins, the pine siskins, Miller said.

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In front of the lodge, more than a dozen feeders were filled with bridled titmouse, cartoonish acorn woodpeckers, thick-billed, black-headed grosbeaks and gregarious pine siskins.

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