Pheasant
noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A bird of family Phasianidae, often hunted for food. countable
"The ſpring diſplaying her elegant taſte, the proud walk of the gold-feathered pheaſant, the light tread of the ſmall-hoofed hind, and the dancing of the ſtar-trained peacock, infuſed joy into the ſoul of the ſpectator of the aſtoniſhing works of the Creator."
- 2 large long-tailed gallinaceous bird native to the Old World but introduced elsewhere wordnet
- 3 The meat of this bird, eaten as food. uncountable
"Tables were laid with cold pheasant, watercressy finger foods, sweets sufficient to give the Greater Raleigh Area sugar shock."
- 4 flesh of a pheasant; usually braised wordnet
Example
More examples"In many parts of the world it is illegal to shoot wild game such as deer, moose or pheasant."
Etymology
From Middle English fesaunt, fesant, from Old French fesan, from Latin phāsiānus, from Ancient Greek φᾱσιανός (phāsianós), meaning “[bird] of the river Φᾶσις (Phâsis)”, from where, it was supposed, the bird spread to the west. Replaced native Old English wōrhana, a variant of mōrhana. More at moorhen.
Related phrases
More for "pheasant"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.