Can you return starling chicks to their parents?
Source: tatoeba (329532)
Starling
/ˈstɑːlɪŋ/
Synonyms for "starling" (5 found)
Ranked by relevance and common usage.
Choosing the right synonym
- Closest matches in this entry: common starling, european starling, magpie, mynas, starlings.
- Sentence evidence is available for starling, so synonym choice can be checked against real usage rather than a flat word list.
- Ranking signals come from opengloss, derived_reverse.
Synonym selection checklist
- Match the part of speech before comparing meanings.
- Check whether the synonym changes intensity, formality, or emotional tone.
- Read the replacement inside the full sentence, not just beside "starling".
- Prefer the clearest word over the most unusual word when writing for speed or comprehension.
When not to replace "starling"
Keep "starling" when the sentence already sounds natural, when a synonym would add unintended emphasis, or when readers need the most familiar wording. A synonym should clarify or sharpen the message, not simply make the sentence look more varied.
If two options seem close, choose the one that best matches the audience and purpose of the sentence.
Replacement workflow
1. Preserve meaning
Choose a synonym only if it keeps the core idea of "starling" intact in the sentence you are editing.
2. Tune tone
Check whether the replacement sounds more formal, casual, emotional, technical, or forceful than the original word.
3. Re-read context
Read the full sentence after the swap. Keep the synonym only when the sentence becomes clearer or more precise.
Review note: Synonym lists are ranked with lexical data and reviewed for practical writing value. Use the comparison notes, sentence evidence, and source labels together; a high-ranking synonym can still be wrong when the audience, register, or grammar changes.
Final fit check
After choosing a replacement for "starling", read the sentence once for meaning and once for rhythm. The best synonym should feel natural in the full sentence, not only accurate in a word list.
If the synonym makes the sentence slower, vaguer, or more dramatic than intended, keep "starling" or choose a simpler alternative from the closest-match group.
Related word relations
OpenGloss and ConceptNet supply richer edges like generalizations, collocations, and derivations.
More general
5 entriesMore specific
2 entriesspotless starlingwhite-cheeked starling
Collocations
6 entriesEuropean starlingcommon starlingstarling dietstarling habitatstarling murmurationsstarling plumage
Inflections
1 entriesTranslations
95 translations across 82 languages.
Afrikaans
1 entries- spreeu noun (bird)
Albanian
2 entries- gargull noun (bird)
- shturë noun (bird)
Ancient Greek
1 entries- ψάρ noun (bird)
Arabic
2 entries- زرزور noun (bird)
- زُرْزُور noun (bird)
Armenian
1 entries- սարյակ noun (bird)
Asturian
1 entries- estornín noun (bird)
Bashkir
1 entries- сыйырсыҡ noun (bird)
Basque
1 entries- arabazozo noun (bird)
Belarusian
1 entries- шпак noun (bird)
Bengali
1 entries- শালিক noun (bird)
Breton
1 entries- tred noun (bird)
Bulgarian
1 entries- скоре́ц noun (bird)
Catalan
1 entries- estornell noun (bird)
Chechen
1 entries- алкханч noun (bird)
Chinese Mandarin
1 entries- 椋鳥 /椋鸟 noun (bird)
Cornish
1 entries- troos noun (bird)
Crimean Tatar
1 entries- sıyırcıq noun (bird)
Czech
1 entries- špaček noun (bird)
Danish
1 entries- stær noun (bird)
Dutch
1 entries- spreeuw noun (bird)
Esperanto
1 entries- sturno noun (bird)
Estonian
2 entries- kuldnokk noun (bird)
- künnirästas noun (bird)
Faroese
1 entries- stari noun (bird)
Finnish
1 entries- kottarainen noun (bird)
French
1 entries- étourneau noun (bird)
Friulian
1 entries- sturnel noun (bird)
Galician
1 entries- estorniño noun (bird)
Georgian
1 entries- შოშია noun (bird)
German
1 entries- Star noun (bird)
Greek
1 entries- ψαρόνι noun (bird)
Hebrew
1 entries- זַרְזִיר noun (bird)
Hungarian
1 entries- seregély noun (bird)
Icelandic
1 entries- stari noun (bird)
Inari Sami
1 entries- kottarâš noun (bird)
Indonesian
1 entries- jalak noun (bird)
Irish
1 entries- druid noun (bird)
Italian
1 entries- storno noun (bird)
Japanese
1 entries- 椋鳥 noun (bird)
Javanese
1 entries- jalak noun (bird)
Ladin
1 entries- storno noun (bird)
Latin
1 entries- sturnus noun (bird)
Latvian
1 entries- mājas strazds noun (bird)
Lithuanian
1 entries- varnėnas noun (bird)
Low German
1 entries- Spree noun (bird)
Lower Sorbian
1 entries- škórc noun (bird)
Lule Sami
1 entries- sterra noun (bird)
Luxembourgish
1 entries- Spréif noun (bird)
Macedonian
1 entries- сколовра́нец noun (bird)
Maltese
1 entries- sturnell noun (bird)
Māori
1 entries- tāringi noun (bird)
Norman
2 entries- étourné noun (bird)
- êtourné noun (bird)
Northern Kurdish
3 entries- alik noun (bird)
- reşêlek noun (bird)
- zerzûr noun (bird)
Northern Sami
1 entries- stárra noun (bird)
Norwegian Bokmål
1 entries- stær noun (bird)
Norwegian Nynorsk
2 entries- star noun (bird)
- stare noun (bird)
Occitan
1 entries- estornèl noun (bird)
Old English
1 entries- stær noun (bird)
Ossetian
1 entries- сауцъиу noun (bird)
Ottoman Turkish
4 entries- زرزور noun (bird)
- سار noun (bird)
- صیغیرجق noun (bird)
- چكركه قوشی noun (bird)
Persian
2 entries- سار noun (bird)
- ساری noun (bird)
Polish
1 entries- szpak noun (bird)
Portuguese
1 entries- estorninho noun (bird)
Romanian
1 entries- graur noun (bird)
Romansch
1 entries- sturnel noun (bird)
Russian
1 entries- скворе́ц noun (bird)
Sardinian
2 entries- istùrulu campinu noun (bird)
- sturru grandinau noun (bird)
Scottish Gaelic
1 entries- druid noun (bird)
Serbo-Croatian
2 entries- čvórak noun (bird)
- чво́рак noun (bird)
Slovak
1 entries- škorec noun (bird)
Slovene
1 entries- škorec noun (bird)
Spanish
1 entries- estornino noun (bird)
Swedish
1 entries- stare noun (bird)
Tagalog
1 entries- martines noun (bird)
Talysh
1 entries- шор noun (bird)
Turkish
1 entries- sığırcık noun (bird)
Turkmen
1 entries- sar noun (bird)
Ukrainian
1 entries- шпак noun (bird)
Upper Sorbian
1 entries- škórc noun (bird)
Venetan
1 entries- strioło noun (bird)
Volapük
1 entries- sturnod noun (bird)
Welsh
1 entries- drudwen noun (bird)
West-Frisian
1 entries- protter noun (bird)
Sample sentences
8 total sentences available.
Today, I saw a starling.
Source: tatoeba (378583)
The starling has been chosen as Bird of the Year 2018.
Source: tatoeba (6550164)
The many coloured Parrot, the Blackbird, the Starling, with the Magpie and the Jay, learn to form men's words. A great many are put in cages.
Source: tatoeba (7315311)
Showing 4 of 8 available sentences.
Common questions
What are the closest synonyms for "starling"?
Closest matches include common starling, european starling, magpie, mynas, starlings.
How should I check whether a synonym fits "starling"?
Compare the replacement against real sentence context. This entry includes sample sentences so you can check tone, grammar, and meaning before swapping words.