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windhover

 - 3 dictionary results

wind⋅hov⋅er

[wind-huhv-er, -hov-]
–noun
the kestrel, Falco tinnunculus.

Origin:
1665–75; wind 1 + hover; from its hovering flight, head to the wind
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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wind·hov·er   (wĭnd'hŭv'ər, -hŏv'-)   
n.   Chiefly British
A kestrel.
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

windhover 
"kestrel," 1674, from wind (n.) + hover; so called from the bird's habit of hovering in the wind. An earlier name for it was windfucker (1599).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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