storm petrel
or storm-petrel
Save This Word!
noun
any of several small, tube-nosed seabirds of the family Hydrobatidae, usually having black or sooty-brown plumage with a white rump.
QUIZZES
THINK YOU’VE GOT A HANDLE ON THIS US STATE NICKNAME QUIZ?
Did you ever collect all those state quarters? Put them to good use on this quiz about curious state monikers and the facts around them.
Question 1 of 8
Mississippi’s nickname comes from the magnificent trees that grow there. What is it?
Compare stormy petrel.
Origin of storm petrel
First recorded in 1795–1805
Words nearby storm petrel
storm house, storming, storm lantern, stormless, Stormont, storm petrel, storm pit, stormproof, storm sewer, storm signal, stormstayed
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for storm petrel
British Dictionary definitions for storm petrel
storm petrel
noun
any small petrel, such as the northern Hydrobates pelagicus, of the family Hydrobatidae, typically having a dark plumage with paler underpartsAlso called: Mother Carey's chicken, stormy petrel
Word Origin for storm petrel
C19: so named because it was thought to be a harbinger of rough weather
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