spoonbill

American

[spoon-bil] / ˈspunˌbɪl /

noun

any of several wading birds of the family Plataleidae, related to the ibises, having a long, flat bill with a spoonlike tip.
any of various birds having a similar bill, as the shoveler duck.
the paddlefish.

spoonbill British

/ ˈspuːnˌbɪl /

noun

any of several wading birds of warm regions, such as Platalea leucorodia ( common spoonbill ) and Ajaia ajaja ( roseate spoonbill ), having a long horizontally flattened bill: family Threskiornithidae, order Ciconiiformes

"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 spoonbill

First recorded in 1670–80; spoon + bill ²

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.

In no time, I was in unfamiliar territory: The sun rose over spoonbills and egrets standing in shallow water as a lone kayaker navigated fields of marsh grass.

From The Wall Street Journal

Birds, from pigeons and crows to the more rare roseate spoonbill, were the inspiration.

From BBC

The Franco-Belgian couturier referenced the extravagant plumage of a roseate spoonbill or the crested cockatoo alongside the humble crow, grey pigeon and magpie.

From Barron's

Activists are suing to stop it, pointing out that the site still provides habitat for endangered species like black-faced spoonbills and Far Eastern curlews.

From National Geographic

"Now we can officially celebrate the return of a former lost breeding species to the Broadland landscape with the first fledged spoonbill here since the mid-17th Century," he added.

From BBC

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