Catbird
//ˈkatbɜːd// noun
noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An American passerine bird of the genera Dumetella and Melanoptila.
"The catbird’s note exactly resembles the voice of a kitten, that a stranger to it would instantly conclude that such an animal "had got bewildered in the branches"."
- 2 North American songbird whose call resembles a cat's mewing wordnet
- 3 Any of four species of Australasian bowerbirds of the genera Ailuroedus and Scenopoeetes.
"The cat bird had a forlorn cry, like a whimpering child or the animal it is named for."
- 4 any of various birds of the Australian region whose males build ornamented structures resembling bowers in order to attract females wordnet
- 5 A babbler-like bird from eastern Africa, Parophasma galinieri.
Example
More examples"The catbird’s note exactly resembles the voice of a kitten, that a stranger to it would instantly conclude that such an animal "had got bewildered in the branches"."
Etymology
From cat + bird, because its cry is said to resemble that of a cat.
Related phrases
More for "catbird"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.