wildfowl
Americannoun
noun
-
any bird that is hunted by man, esp any duck or similar aquatic bird
-
such birds collectively
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of wildfowl
before 1000; Middle English wilde foul, Old English wildefugl. See wild, fowl
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The 64-year-old has a particular penchant for wildfowl shooting in the U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 16, 2026
Because of the flowering plant’s resemblance to the head of a crane, the colonists called the fruit “craneberries” and used it in sour sauces they served with wildfowl.
From Washington Post • Nov. 16, 2018
But recent forensic analysis of its skull found lead shot pellets, which were typically used to hunt wildfowl.
From BBC • Apr. 19, 2018
Higher concentrations of certain nitrogen isotopes are a sign of a diet rich in animals that have a relatively high place in the food web — such as wildfowl and freshwater fish.
From Scientific American • Aug. 18, 2014
But in the early days our greatest successes were among the sea ducks and wildfowl which haunted the marram-covered flats and ooze banks of an inland bay a few miles from our home.
From The Confessions of a Poacher by Anonymous
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
