blackbird
1 of 2noun
black·bird ˈblak-ˌbərd 
1
: any of various birds of which the males are largely or entirely black: such as
a
: a common thrush (Turdus merula) of Eurasia and northern Africa having an orange bill and eye rim
b
: any of several American oscine birds (family Icteridae)
2
: a Pacific islander kidnapped for use as a plantation laborer
blackbird
2 of 2verb
blackbirded; blackbirding; blackbirds
intransitive verb
: to engage in the slave trade especially in the South Pacific
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web
San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Apr. 2022 From his first recording of a Eurasian blackbird as a boy, Stewart’s motivation has been singular: to use sound as a megaphone for vulnerable places and animals. Corryn Wetzel, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 Feb. 2022 There’s intention behind that aesthetically arresting flourish: In Mohegan, Sayet was named for a blackbird that flutters between the spirit world and the corporal realm. Washington Post, 29 June 2021 The blackbird hen is brown, purple finches are distinctly raspberry red and many greyhounds come in colors other than gray. Richard Lederer, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 June 2021 There's a blackbird and there's a robin and a great tit and the rest have gone. Karen Weintraub, USA TODAY, 20 May 2021 The designs include a depiction of Angelou with a bird cage in one hand and a blackbird in another, a dove landing on an open book, as well as an ink quill fashioned to look like a bird. Isabella Meneses, ABC News, 8 May 2021 The grackle is the foot-long blackbird with bright yellow eyes. Jim Gilbert, Star Tribune, 18 Mar. 2021 Every single person, including the director, got a blackbird tattoo to kind of commemorate our experience together. Lauren Huff, EW.com, 17 Sep. 2020 See More
Noun
In the Russian firebird story, a woman artist is kidnapped by an evil foreign prince who disguises himself as a blackbird and then transforms her into a firebird to fly her back to his country. San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Apr. 2022 From his first recording of a Eurasian blackbird as a boy, Stewart’s motivation has been singular: to use sound as a megaphone for vulnerable places and animals. Corryn Wetzel, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 Feb. 2022 There’s intention behind that aesthetically arresting flourish: In Mohegan, Sayet was named for a blackbird that flutters between the spirit world and the corporal realm. Washington Post, 29 June 2021 The blackbird hen is brown, purple finches are distinctly raspberry red and many greyhounds come in colors other than gray. Richard Lederer, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 June 2021 There's a blackbird and there's a robin and a great tit and the rest have gone. Karen Weintraub, USA TODAY, 20 May 2021 The designs include a depiction of Angelou with a bird cage in one hand and a blackbird in another, a dove landing on an open book, as well as an ink quill fashioned to look like a bird. Isabella Meneses, ABC News, 8 May 2021 The grackle is the foot-long blackbird with bright yellow eyes. Jim Gilbert, Star Tribune, 18 Mar. 2021 Every single person, including the director, got a blackbird tattoo to kind of commemorate our experience together. Lauren Huff, EW.com, 17 Sep. 2020 See More Word History
First Known Use
Noun
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Verb
1836, in the meaning defined above
Phrases Containing blackbird
Kids Definition
blackbird
noun
black·bird ˈblak-ˌbərd
: any of several birds of which the males are mostly black