sparrow hawk
Americannoun
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a small, short-winged European hawk, Accipiter nisus, that preys on smaller birds.
noun
Etymology
Origin of sparrow hawk
late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50
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.
Upon searching for the cause of a dull thump against one of our windows we discovered this sparrow hawk, just three yards from our window on our terrace.
From The Guardian ● Apr. 30, 2020
He cited sparrow hawk nests and badgers as evidence that Sitka forests foster wildlife.
From The Guardian ● Jul. 7, 2019
The song of the sparrow hawk, for example, is like “a speeded-up recording of the sound of the night-jar.”
From The New Yorker ● Apr. 17, 2017
The university’s own website, however, insists the team’s name now refers to an imaginary hybrid of a blue jay and a sparrow hawk, so we’ll have to go with that.
From Slate ● Mar. 14, 2012
A sparrow hawk, fresh from his sixth victim, possibly recognizing in Mr. Hamlin a kindred spirit, stared at him in surprise, and was fain to confess the superiority of man.
From Selected Stories of Bret Harte by Bret Harte
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
