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Carrion - 5 dictionary results

car⋅ri⋅on

  [kar-ee-uhn]
Use Carrion in a Sentence
–noun
1. dead and putrefying flesh.
2. rottenness; anything vile.
–adjective
3. feeding on carrion.
Origin:
1175–1225; ME caroyne, careyn, carion < AF careine, OF charo(i)gne < VL *caronia, equiv. to L carun- (see caruncle ) + -ia -y 3
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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car·ri·on   (kār'ē-ən)   
n.  Dead and decaying flesh.
adj.  
  1. Of or similar to dead and decaying flesh.
  2. Feeding on such flesh.

[Middle English careine, from Anglo-Norman, from Vulgar Latin *carōnia, from Latin carō, flesh; see sker-1 in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Carrion

Car"ri*on\, n. [OE. caroyne, OF. caroigne, F. charogne, LL. caronia, fr. L. caro flesh Cf. Crone, Crony.]

1. The dead and putrefying body or flesh of an animal; flesh so corrupted as to be unfit for food.

They did eat the dead carrions. --Spenser.

2. A contemptible or worthless person; -- a term of reproach. [Obs.] "Old feeble carrions." --Shak.

Carrion

Car"ri*on\, a. Of or pertaining to dead and putrefying carcasses; feeding on carrion.

A prey for carrion kites. --Shak.

Carrion beetle (Zo["o]l.), any beetle that feeds habitually on dead animals; -- also called sexton beetle and burying beetle. There are many kinds, belonging mostly to the family Silphid[ae].

Carrion buzzard (Zo["o]l.), a South American bird of several species and genera (as Ibycter, Milvago, and Polyborus), which act as scavengers. See Caracara.

Carrion crow, the common European crow (Corvus corone) which feeds on carrion, insects, fruits, and seeds.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : Carrion
Spanish: carroña,
German: das Aas,
Japanese: 腐肉
More Translations »

carrion 
c.1225, from Anglo-Fr. carogne, from V.L. *caronia "carcass," from L. caro "meat."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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