Definitions
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A totipalmate natatorial bird of the family Plotidæ and genus Plotus: so called from the long, slender, snaky neck; a snake-neck; an anhinga or water-turkey; a darter. See cut under
anhinga . - noun The wryneck, Iynx torquilla: so named from the serpentine movement of the neck. See cut under
wryneck .
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun (Zoöl.) Any one of four species of aquatic birds of the genus Anhinga or Plotus. They are allied to the gannets and cormorants, but have very long, slender, flexible necks, and sharp bills.
- noun (Zoöl.) The wryneck.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun Any long-necked waterbird in the family
Anhingidae
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun fish-eating bird of warm inland waters having a long flexible neck and slender sharp-pointed bill
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
snake + bird, from its snake-like neck.
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Examples
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Its long neck resembles a snake ready to strike when the Anhinga - also called a snakebird - is swimming.
The Seattle Times 2011
reesetee commented on the word snakebird
Nickname for the Anhinga, also called water-turkey.
December 8, 2007