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yardbird

[ yahrd-burd ]
/ ˈyɑrdˌbɜrd /
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR yardbird ON THESAURUS.COM

noun Slang.

a convict or prisoner.
an army recruit.
a soldier confined to camp and assigned to cleaning the grounds or other menial tasks as punishment for violation of the rules.

RELATED WORDS

hostage, convict, captive, detainee, culprit, offender, crook, hooligan, fugitive, gangster, hoodlum, felon, thug, mobster, lawbreaker, miscreant, wrongdoer, criminal, delinquent, tough

Nearby words

  1. yard-long bean,
  2. yard-of-ale,
  3. yardage,
  4. yardang,
  5. yardarm,
  6. yardie,
  7. yarding,
  8. yardland,
  9. yardman,
  10. yardmaster

Origin of yardbird

1940–45, Americanism; yard2 + bird, by analogy with jailbird
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
British Dictionary definitions for yardbird

yardbird

/ (ˈjɑːdˌbɜːd) /

noun

US military an inexperienced, untrained, or clumsy soldier, esp one employed on menial duties
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
Word Origin and History for yardbird

yardbird

n.

"convict," 1956, from yard (n.1) + bird (n.1), from the notion of prison yards; earlier it meant "basic trainee" (World War II armed forces slang).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper