Illustration of sandpiper
sandpiper
noun
sand·pip·er
ˈsan(d)-ˌpī-pər 
: any of various small shorebirds (family Scolopacidae, the sandpiper family) distinguished from the related plovers chiefly by the longer and soft-tipped bill
Examples of sandpiper in a Sentence
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Among the birds mostly likely to be flying over Michigan at night are Northern house wrens, Forster's terns, blue-gray gnatcatchers, pectoral sandpipers, American tree sparrows and Caspian terns.
—
Jalen Williams, Freep.com, 21 Apr. 2026
The disarmingly handsome comic adopted the delivery of a smarmy newsman and deadpanned a joke about the hatching of a baby sandpiper, a triumph for the zoo where it was born, until the bird was stomped to death by a baby hippo born a day earlier.
—Scottie Andrew, CNN Money, 1 Jan. 2026
Shorebirds like sandpipers and plovers use this sense to detect prey beneath the sand by sensing subtle mechanical vibrations.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 7 Nov. 2025
Most members of the sandpiper family tend to be sociable.
—Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
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Jalen Williams, Freep.com, 21 Apr. 2026
The disarmingly handsome comic adopted the delivery of a smarmy newsman and deadpanned a joke about the hatching of a baby sandpiper, a triumph for the zoo where it was born, until the bird was stomped to death by a baby hippo born a day earlier.
—Scottie Andrew, CNN Money, 1 Jan. 2026
Shorebirds like sandpipers and plovers use this sense to detect prey beneath the sand by sensing subtle mechanical vibrations.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 7 Nov. 2025
Most members of the sandpiper family tend to be sociable.
—Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sandpiper
Cite this Entry
“Sandpiper.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sandpiper. Accessed 18 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
sandpiper
noun
sand·pip·er
-ˌpī-pər
: any of numerous small shorebirds with usually long bills and legs
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