wildfowl

noun

: a game bird
especially : a game waterfowl (such as a wild duck or goose)
wildfowler noun
wildfowling noun

Examples of wildfowl in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The wildfowl carving competition went off in late April as usual, with ornate carvings filling the Ocean City convention hall. Christine Condon, Baltimore Sun, 11 May 2023 These formidable weapons were used for commercial hunting, bringing down whole flocks of wildfowl with a single blast. David Hambling, Popular Mechanics, 9 Dec. 2022 Instead of being flooded like paddies, the fields were soaked by seasonal rains and attracted hungry wildfowl. Elizabeth Gamillo, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 June 2022 Crossing the Kenai River at Kenai Lake and looking to the right, the open water contained a menagerie of wildfowl. Steve Meyer, Anchorage Daily News, 22 Jan. 2022 The good news: Doerr’s creation lifts off quickly, soars, and then, like the various wildfowl wheeling through the story, lands with practiced finesse. Erin Douglass, The Christian Science Monitor, 28 Sep. 2021 The first hunting trips I was allowed to go on, as an observer, were for the wildfowl available near home, pheasants, ducks and geese. Steve Meyer, Anchorage Daily News, 13 June 2020 Decoy-making and wildfowl hunting in the Susquehanna Flats of the Upper Chesapeake Bay is featured in the Havre de Grace Decoy Museum. Algerina Perna, baltimoresun.com, 22 June 2018

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'wildfowl.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of wildfowl was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near wildfowl

Cite this Entry

“Wildfowl.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wildfowl. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

wildfowl

noun
wild·​fowl -ˌfau̇l How to pronounce wildfowl (audio)
: a bird and especially a waterfowl (as a wild duck) hunted as game

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