throstle

American  

[thros-uhl] / ˈθrɒs əl /

noun

1. British (chiefly Literary). the song thrush.

2. Obsolete. a machine for spinning wool, cotton, etc., in which the twisting and winding are simultaneous and continuous.

---

throstle British  

/ ˈθrɒsəl /

noun

1. a poetic name for the thrush, esp the song thrush

2. a spinning machine for wool or cotton in which the fibres are twisted and wound continuously

---

Etymology

Origin of throstle

before 900; Middle English, Old English; cognate with Dutch drossel, German Drossel; akin to Old Norse thrǫstr, Latin turdus thrush

Example Sentences

"What do you think of this passage?" he scornfully asked a Shakespearean enthusiast: " 'I would as lief be thrust through a quicket hedge as cry Pooh to a callow throstle.'"

From Time Magazine Archive

She herself never stirred outside the 'earth' until after midnight, and, even then, the 'wick-wick' of a wakeful throstle set her heart thudding.

From Lives of the Fur Folk by Haviland, M. D.

Barbara was nineteen, and she had a voice which for gaiety and sweetness was like that of a throstle.

From Cruel Barbara Allen From Coals Of Fire And Other Stories, Volume II. (of III.) by Murray, David Christie

For the purpose of twisting the strands together the spindles may be provided either with flyers, as in throstle spinning, or with rings and travellers, as in ring spinning.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 5 "Cosway" to "Coucy" by Various

And as they rode along, Lady mine, The throstle gave them song, And the buds peeped through the grass To see youth and beauty pass, Lady mine.

From In the Saddle A Collection of Poems on Horseback-Riding by Various