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Plover

 - 3 dictionary results

plov⋅er

  [pluhv-er, ploh-ver]
Use Plover in a Sentence
–noun
1. any of various shorebirds of the family Charadriidae. Compare dotterel (def. 1), killdeer, lapwing.
2. any of various similar shorebirds, as the upland plover and other sandpipers.
Origin:
1275–1325; ME < AF; OF plovier rainbird < VL *pluviārius. See pluvial, -er 2
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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plov·er   (plŭv'ər, plō'vər)   
n.   pl. plover or plov·ers

  1. Any of various widely distributed wading birds of the family Charadriidae, having rounded bodies, short tails, and short bills.

  2. Any of various similar or related birds.


[Middle English, from Anglo-Norman, from Vulgar Latin *pluviārius, from Latin pluvia, rain; see pluvial.]
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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Word Origin & History

plover 
1304, from Anglo-Fr. plover, O.Fr. pluvier, earlier plovier (c.1200), from V.L. *plovarius, lit. "belonging to rain," from L. pluvia "rain." Perhaps so called because the birds' migration arrival coincides with the start of the rainy season, or from its supposed restlessness when rain approaches.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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