noun ·3 syllables ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   Either of two small gulls in the genus Rissa of the family Laridae that nest in colonies on sea cliffs and spend the winter on the open ocean.
2. 2
   small pearl-grey gull of northern regions; nests on cliffs and has a rudimentary hind toe wordnet
3. 3
   the black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla), no other kittiwake being found in Europe. Ireland, UK

Synonyms

All synonyms

kittymagpie

Etymology

Originally Scots, imitative of the bird's call.

Related phrases

Rissa brevirostrisRissa tridactylablack-legged kittiwakered-legged kittiwake

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.