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curlew

 - 3 dictionary results

cur⋅lew

  [kur-loo]
Use curlew in a Sentence
–noun
1. any of several shorebirds of the genus Numenius, having a long, slender, downcurved bill, as the common N. arquata, of Europe.
2. any of various similar birds.
Origin:
1300–50; ME < AF curleu, c. MF corleu; perh. imit.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To curlew
cur·lew   (kûrl'yōō, kûr'lōō)   
n.  Any of several brownish, long-legged shore birds of the genus Numenius, having long, slender, downward-curving bills.

[Middle English curleu, from Old French courlieu, perhaps of imitative origin.]
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

curlew 
c.1340, from O.Fr. courlieus (13c.), said to be imitative of the bird's cry but apparently assimilated with corliu "runner, messenger," from corre "to run." The bird is a good runner.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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