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Definitions

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

  1. n. A crowlike Old World bird of the genus Pyrrhocorax, especially P. pyrrhocorax, having black plumage and red legs.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

  1. n. An oscine passerine bird of the family Corvidæ, the red-legged or Cornish crow, Fregilus or Pyrrhocorax graculus, of a black color, with red feet and beak. It is of very extensive though irregular distribution. Though a corvine bird, it has some relationship with the starlings. Also called, specifically, Cornish chough. There are other species, natives of Australia, Java, etc. Palsgrave applies the name to a young crow.

Wiktionary

  1. n. Two species of bird of the genus Pyrrhocorax in the crow family Corvidae that breed mainly in high mountains and on coastal sea cliffs of Eurasia.
  2. n. A monotypic bird genus in the Australian mud-nest builders family, Corcoracidae, that inhabits dry woodlands.

GNU Webster's 1913

  1. n. A bird of the Crow family (Fregilus graculus) of Europe. It is of a black color, with a long, slender, curved bill and red legs; -- also called chauk, chauk-daw, chocard, Cornish chough, red-legged crow. The name is also applied to several allied birds, as the Alpine chough.

WordNet 3.0

  1. n. a European corvine bird of small or medium size with red legs and glossy black plumage

Etymologies

  1. Middle English.

Examples

  • “The Lancaster forces were routed and King Henry, the poor wandering lost King Henry who does not know fully where he is, even when he is in his palace at Whitehall, has run away into the moors of Northumberland, a price on his head as if he were an outlaw, without attendants, without friends, without even followers, like a borderer rebel as wild as a chough.”

    Simon & Schuster: The White Queen

  • “Lear, the old buffer, you wonder his daughters didn't treat him rougher, the old chough, the old chuffer!”

    "When I Read Shakespeare"

  • “I put the baby chough in a box and drove across town to the RSPCA.”

    Archive 2006-11-01

  • “The vet just called to say she had to euthanise the baby chough, because it turned out s/he had a broken wing as well as the leg and the wing was too damaged to fix.”

    Archive 2006-11-01

  • “I'm really impressed that you took the baby chough to the RSPCA, though - lots of people wouldn't have.”

    My heart is breaking...

  • “If you haven't the slightest notion what a chough is or how to pronounce it, read his post.”

    Archive 2006-10-01

  • “bore: underground well brolga: large, gray crane bull bar: heavy bar fixed to the front of a vehicle capsule: infant car seat caravan: trailer chock-a-block: completely full chough: crowlike bird coldie: can of beer cooee: traditional Australian call of “halloo!””

    Simon & Schuster: Steve and Me

Related Words

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Lists

These user-created lists contain the word ‘chough’.

Comments

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  • chained_bear Image can be found here. Aug 25, 2008
  • trivet One of my favorite birds! Feb 29, 2008
  • chained_bear "...he contemplated the birds: a few razorbills and guillemots... some rock-doves, and a small band of choughs..."
    --Patrick O'Brian, The Letter of Marque, 161 Feb 29, 2008
  • chained_bear "'You spoke very chough to Mr Davidge, and you murmured. You must beg his pardon.'

    "After some moments of hesitation, with the men looking at one another with doubtful faces, Auden said, 'The rub is he is such a fine gentleman, sir; we are only simple chaps, and should not know what to say.'

    "'You must go up to him,' said Jack, 'and pull off your hats, as is right, and one of you must say, "We ask your pardon, sir, for answering chough, and murmuring."'"
    --Patrick O'Brian, The Letter of Marque, 146
    Feb 29, 2008

‘chough’ has been looked up 1248 times, added to 13 lists, commented on 4 times, and has a Scrabble score of 15.