[bit-ern] 
| 1. | any of several tawny brown herons that inhabit reedy marshes, as Botaurus lentiginosus (American bittern), of North America, and B. stellaris, of Europe. |
| 2. | any of several small herons of the genus Ixobrychus, as I. exilis (least bittern), of temperate and tropical North and South America. |
| bit·tern 1 (bĭt'ərn) n. Any of several wading birds of the genera Botaurus and Ixobrychus, having mottled brownish plumage and a deep booming cry in the male. [Alteration (perhaps influenced by tern1) of Middle English bitour, from Old French butor, possibly from Vulgar Latin *buti-taurus : Latin būtiō, buzzard + Latin taurus, bull (after its cry); see tauro- in Indo-European roots.] |
| bit·tern 2 (bĭt'ərn) n. The bitter water solution of bromides, magnesium, and calcium salts remaining after sodium chloride is crystallized out of seawater. [From bitter.] |
Bittern
is found three times in connection with the desolations to come upon Babylon, Idumea, and Nineveh (Isa. 14:23; 34:11; Zeph. 2:14). This bird belongs to the class of cranes. Its scientific name is Botaurus stellaris. It is a solitary bird, frequenting marshy ground. The Hebrew word (kippod) thus rendered in the Authorized Version is rendered "porcupine" in the Revised Version. But in the passages noted the kippod is associated with birds, with pools of water, and with solitude and desolation. This favours the idea that not the "porcupine" but the "bittern" is really intended by the word.
