rainbird

[ reyn-burd ]
/ ˈreɪnˌbɜrd /

noun

any of several birds, especially the black-billed cuckoo (Coccyzus erythropthalmus) and the yellow-billed cuckoo (C. americanus), that are said to call frequently before a rainstorm.

Origin of rainbird

First recorded in 1910–15; rain + bird

Words nearby rainbird

rain out, rain shadow, rain shower, rain tree, rainband, rainbird, rainbow, rainbow bird, rainbow bridge, rainbow cactus, rainbow darter

Example sentences from the Web for rainbird

  • Rainbird is a local name for the green woodpecker, but as an East-Anglian name it is most likely an imitative form of Fr.

    The Romance of Names |Ernest Weekley

British Dictionary definitions for rainbird

rainbird
/ (ˈreɪnˌbɜːd) /

noun

any of various birds, such as (in Britain) the green woodpecker, whose cry is supposed to portend rain