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sheathbill

sheath·bill
S s

Transcription

    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • [sheeth-bil]
    • /ˈʃiθˌbɪl/
    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • [sheeth-bil]
    • /ˈʃiθˌbɪl/

Definitions of sheathbill word

  • noun sheathbill either of two white sea birds, Chionis alba or C. minor, of the colder parts of the Southern Hemisphere: so called from the horny sheath covering the base of the upper bill. 1
  • noun sheathbill either of two pigeon-like shore birds, Chionis alba or C. minor, of antarctic and subantarctic regions, constituting the family Chionididae: order Charadriiformes. They have a white plumage and a horny sheath at the base of the bill 0
  • noun sheathbill any of a family (Chionidae) of white-plumed antarctic shorebirds distinguished by a horny, saddlelike sheath at the base of the upper bill 0

Information block about the term

Origin of sheathbill

First appearance:

before 1775
One of the 45% newest English words
First recorded in 1775-85; sheath + bill2

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Sheathbill

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation

sheathbill popularity

A pretty common term. Usually people know it’s meaning, but prefer to use a more spread out synonym. About 44% of English native speakers know the meaning and use word.
According to our data about 60% of words is more used. This is a rare but used term. It occurs in the pages of specialized literature and in the speech of educated people.

sheathbill usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

See also

Matching words

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