α. Scottish 1700s pictarne, 1700s pitcarne (irregular), 1800s pictarn; English regional (northern) 1900s– pic'tarn.
β. Scottish 1800s picketa, 1800s– pickietar.
γ. Scottish 1900s– pictar.
pictarnen.
/ˈpɪktɑːn/, U.S. /ˈpɪkˌtɑrn/, Scottish English /ˈpɪktarn/, /ˈpɪktɔrn/ Scottish and English regional (northern).
= pictarnie n. pictarne storm n. Scottish (north-eastern) a storm occurring around the time when terns are returning from winter abroad.
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the world > animals > birds > order Charadriiformes > family Laridae (gulls and terns) > [noun] > member of genus Sterna (tern) > sterna hirundo (common tern)
scray1668
spur1676
kirmew1694
pictarne1710
pirr maw1744
tarrock1774
pictarnie1784
medrick1832
shear-tail1885
the world > animals > birds > order Charadriiformes > family Laridae (gulls and terns) > [noun] > member of genus Sterna (tern) > sterna paradisaea (arctic tern)
arctic tern1678
pictarne1710
pictarnie1784
1710 R. Sibbald Hist. Fife & Kinross ii. iii. 46 Hirundo Marina, Sterna Turueri: Our People call it the Pictarne.
1771 T. Pennant Tour Scotl. 1769 65 Great Terns, called here Pictarnes.
1851 Zoologist 9 3080 I observed several parties of pickietars busily employed in fishing in the Firth.
1885 C. Swainson Provincial Names Brit. Birds 209 Black-headed gull... Pick sea; Pictarn; Pickmire (Roxburgh).
1900 W. Dickinson & E. W. Prevost Gloss. Dial. Cumberland (rev. ed.) 243/1 Pic'tarn, Sea swallow, Pickman, Obs., the Tern.
1914 Trans. Banffshire Field Club 26–7 25 The storms of the year were named: the pictar storm came between the 1st and 8th of April.
1975 J. Y. Mather & H. H. Speitel Ling. Atlas Scotl. I. 297 Seagull, [Morayshire] pickie tar.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2006; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1710