tropic bird
or trop·ic·bird
Save This Word!
noun
any of several web-footed seabirds of the family Phaethontidae, chiefly of tropical seas, having white plumage with black markings and a pair of greatly elongated central tail feathers.
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?
Also called boatswain bird.
Origin of tropic bird
First recorded in 1675–85
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
British Dictionary definitions for tropic bird
tropicbird
/ (ˈtrɒpɪkˌbɜːd) /
noun
any aquatic bird of the tropical family Phaethontidae, having long slender tail feathers and a white plumage with black markings: order Pelecaniformes (pelicans, cormorants, etc)
Word Origin for tropicbird
C17: so called because it is found in the tropical regions
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