sparrow
any of numerous American finches of the family Emberizinae.: Compare chipping sparrow, song sparrow.
any member of the Old World genus Passer, formerly thought to be closely related to the weaverbirds but now placed in their own family, Passeridae.
British. the house sparrow.
any of several other unrelated small birds.: Compare Java sparrow, hedge sparrow.
Sparrow, Military. a 12-foot (4-meter), all-weather, radar-guided U.S. air-to-air missile with an 88-pound (40-kilogram) high-explosive warhead.
Origin of sparrow
1Other words from sparrow
- spar·row·less, adjective
- spar·row·like, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
British Dictionary definitions for sparrow
/ (ˈspærəʊ) /
any weaverbird of the genus Passer and related genera, esp the house sparrow, having a brown or grey plumage and feeding on seeds or insects
US and Canadian any of various North American finches, such as the chipping sparrow (Spizella passerina), that have a dullish streaked plumage
Origin of sparrow
1Other words from sparrow
- Related adjective: passerine
- See also hedge sparrow, tree sparrow, song sparrow
Derived forms of sparrow
- sparrow-like, adjective
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
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