tui

American  

[too-ee] / ˈtu i /

noun

1. a black New Zealand honey eater, Prosthemadera novaeseelandiae, having a patch of white feathers on each side of the throat, sometimes tamed as a pet.

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tui British  

/ ˈtuːɪ /

noun

1. a New Zealand honeyeater, Prosthemadera novaeseelandiae , having a glossy bluish-green plumage with white feathers at the throat: it mimics human speech and the songs of other birds

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Etymology

Origin of tui

First recorded in 1825–35, tui is from the Maori word tūī

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

tui

Toni Williams, 52, who lives on the Banks Peninsula, said he has seen a three- or fourfold increase in the number of tui, a native bird, at a feeder near his house.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2024

As a result, conservation groups sued the agency, saying it would potentially harm sage grouse, a species whose population is listed as "sensitive," as well as the Owens tui chub, an endangered fish.

From Salon ● Aug. 30, 2023

The only place in the world that the 5-inch-long, olive-colored tui chub still exists is in a basin in Esmeralda County between Reno and Las Vegas.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 23, 2022

When New Zealanders hear the sound of a tui, it makes them very happy.

From Washington Post ● Mar. 30, 2017

Nell, catching the leading tune of the concert, joined with the chorus and warbled in her thin little voice the notes resembling the quickly repeated sound of "tui, tui, tui, twiling-ting! ting!"

From In Desert and Wilderness by Sienkiewicz, Henryk