vulture

American  

[vuhl-cher] / ˈvʌl tʃər /

noun

vultures plural

1. any of several large, primarily carrion-eating Old World birds of prey of the family Accipitridae, often having a naked head and less powerful feet than those of the related hawks and eagles.

2. any of several superficially similar New World birds of the family Cathartidae, as the turkey vulture.

3. a person or thing that preys, especially greedily or unscrupulously.

   That vulture would sell out his best friend.

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vulture British  

/ ˈvʌltʃə /

noun

1. any of various very large diurnal birds of prey of the genera Neophron, Gyps, Gypaetus, etc, of Africa, Asia, and warm parts of Europe, typically having broad wings and soaring flight and feeding on carrion: family Accipitridae (hawks) See also griffon 1 lammergeier

2. any similar bird of the family Cathartidae of North, Central, and South America See also condor turkey buzzard

3. a person or thing that preys greedily and ruthlessly on others, esp the helpless

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• vulture-like
  adjective
• vulturelike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• vultures
  plural

Etymology

Origin of vulture

1325–75; Middle English < Latin vultur

Compare meaning

How does vulture compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• condor vs. vulture
• vulture vs. turkey vulture

Explanation

A vulture is a type of bird — with a bald head and neck — that feeds on dead animals. One of the most fearsome birds is the vulture: this bird of prey feeds on almost nothing but dead flesh. Unlike other animals that hunt, vultures go after animals that were killed by other animals or died naturally. Vultures are scavengers looking for corpses. And because of their morbid tastes, vultures are often associated with horror movies and scenes of carnage.

Example Sentences

Vulture populations are booming across the U.S., according to Hannah Partridge, who works for the National Audubon Society and studied vultures for years.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 16, 2026

“Because of ‘Wicked’s’ success but also the fanship, we have almost a responsibility to figure out how we can continue in this universe,” Michael Moses, the studio’s chief marketing officer, recently told Vulture.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 22, 2026

“I really, really want people to engage with ‘Pluribus’ any darn way they want to,” Gilligan recently told Vulture.

From MarketWatch • Dec. 31, 2025

“I’m not in a position to say no to life-changing money. But it wasn’t life-changing,” he said in a Sept. 25 Instagram Story quoted by Vulture, adding.

From Salon • Oct. 5, 2025

This is still just a game to him, Quentyn realized, no different than the time he led six of us up into the mountains to find the old lair of the Vulture King.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin