frigate bird

American

Or frigatebird

noun

any of several predacious seabirds of the genus Fregata, having fully webbed feet.

frigate bird British

noun

Also called: man-of-war bird. any bird of the genus Fregata and family Fregatidae , of tropical and subtropical seas, having a long bill with a downturned tip, a wide wingspan, and a forked tail: order Pelecaniformes (pelicans, cormorants, etc)

"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

Etymology

Origin of frigate bird

First recorded in 1730–40

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.

Sometimes for a whole day they talked in sea lion grunts or frigate bird squawks or plankton wiggles.

From Literature

Ascension Island has a wealth of species native to the island that have been affected by plastic pollution, such as the land crab, frigate bird and various species of sharks, turtles, fish and seabirds.

From BBC

For a pilot, he says, “I would put a mountain below, a frigate bird on top of it and the patterns for lightning and wind around it.”

From New York Times

Pelicans dove, magnificent frigate birds glided overhead, and a great blue heron took flight from the water.

From Washington Post

Later, I strolled past a fish market where a 16-foot marlin dangled from a hook, and sea lions, pelicans and frigate birds nudged iPhone-wielding tourists.

From New York Times

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023