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titmouse - 4 dictionary results

tit⋅mouse

  [tit-mous]
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–noun, plural -mice  [-mahys] .
any of numerous, widely distributed, small songbirds of the family Paridae, esp. of the genus Parus, having soft, thick plumage and a short, stout, conical bill.

Origin:
1275–1325; ME tit(e)mose (see tit 1 ); mose, OE māse titmouse; c. G Meise titmouse, ON meis- in meisingr kind of bird; modern mouse by folk etym.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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tit·mouse   (tĭt'mous')   
n.   pl. tit·mice (-mīs')
Any of numerous small insect-eating passerine birds of the family Paridae, found in woodland areas throughout the world and including especially members of the genus Parus, such as the chickadee. See Regional Note at tit1.

[Alteration (influenced by mous, mouse) of Middle English titmose : tit- (probably from Old Norse tittr, titmouse) + mose, titmouse (from Old English māse, titmouse).]
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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Titmouse

Tit"mouse`\, n.; pl. Titmice. [OE. titemose, titmase; tit small, or a small bird + AS. m[=a]se a kind of small bird; akin to D. mees a titmouse, G. meise, OHG. meisa, Icel. meisingr. The English form has been influenced by the unrelated word mouse. Cf. Tit a small bird.] (Zo["o]l.) Any one of numerous species of small insectivorous singing birds belonging to Parus and allied genera; -- called also tit, and tomtit.

Note: The blue titmouse (Parus c[oe]ruleus), the marsh titmouse (P. palustris), the crested titmouse (P. cristatus), the great titmouse (P. major), and the long tailed titmouse ([AE]githalos caudatus), are the best-known European species. See Chickadee.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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titmouse 
"small, active bird," c.1325, titmose, from tit (2) (expressing something small) + O.E. mase "titmouse," from P.Gmc. *maison (cf. Du. mees, Ger. meise), from adj. *maisa- "little, tiny." Spelling infl. 16c. by unrelated mouse.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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