Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A contour feather of a bird, as distinguished from a down feather or a plume.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun In ornithology, a feather; a plume; specifically, a contour-feather, as distinguished from a down-feather or plumule; especially, one of the large stiff feathers of the wings or tail; one of the remiges or rectrices. See feather.
  • noun Same as pen-case.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun (Zoöl.) A perfect, or normal, feather.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun a contour feather

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Latin, feather; see pet- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Latin penna ("feather")

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