flamingo

[ fluh-ming-goh ]

noun,plural fla·min·gos, fla·min·goes.
  1. any of several aquatic birds of the family Phoenicopteridae, having very long legs and neck, webbed feet, a bill bent downward at the tip, and pinkish to scarlet plumage.

Origin of flamingo

1
1555–65; compare Portuguese flamengo,Spanish flamenco literally, Fleming (cf. flamenco); apparently originally a jocular name, from the conventional Romance image of the Flemish as ruddy-complexioned

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How to use flamingo in a sentence

  • Hither the phaeton bends his rapid flight, and flocks of rosy flamingos here defy the fowler's cunning.

    Wanderings in South America | Charles Waterton
  • Not even those flocks of herons and flamingos flying in large circles, and uttering shrill cries which you can hear from here?

    The Freebooters | Gustave Aimard
  • Likewise, Stuart Baker has given flamingos a place among the Indian ducks and their allies.

    Glimpses of Indian Birds | Douglas Dewar

British Dictionary definitions for flamingo

flamingo

/ (fləˈmɪŋɡəʊ) /


nounplural -gos or -goes
  1. any large wading bird of the family Phoenicopteridae, having a pink-and-red plumage and downward-bent bill and inhabiting brackish lakes: order Ciconiiformes

    • a reddish-orange colour

    • (as adjective): flamingo gloves

Origin of flamingo

1
C16: from Portuguese flamengo, from Provençal flamenc, from Latin flamma flame + Germanic suffix -ing denoting descent from or membership of; compare -ing ³

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