eagle

play

noun ea·gle \ˈē-gəl\

Definition of eagle

1 : any of various large diurnal birds of prey (family Accipitridae) noted for their strength, size, keenness of vision, and powers of flight
2a : the eagle-bearing standard of the ancient Romansb : one of a pair of eagle-bearing silver insignia of rank worn by a military colonel or a navy captain
3 : a gold coin of the U.S. bearing an eagle on the reverse and usually having a value of ten dollars
4 : a golf score of two strokes less than par on a hole — compare birdie
5 capitalized [Fraternal Order of Eagles] : a member of a major fraternal order

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See eagle defined for kids

Examples of eagle in a Sentence

She made an eagle on the fourth hole.
She made eagle on the fourth hole.

Recent Examples of eagle from the Web

Shepherd said the area is comprised of woods and wetlands and is now home to migrating bald eagles.

— frank vaisvilas, Daily Southtown, "Blessing the Waters ceremony set for Sunday, will focus on clean water and air", 21 June 2017
Among the illicit objects was a bust of Adolf Hitler, a knife with Nazi markings, toys that would have been used to indoctrinate children, a statue of the Nazi eagle, and magnifying glasses packed away into boxes stamped with swastikas.

— brigit katz, Smithsonian, "Trove of Nazi Artifacts Found in Secret Room of Argentina Home", 21 June 2017
For such a long-unsolved case, the investigation is surprisingly active into the disappearance of the artworks, which include paintings, a Chinese vase and a 19th century finial of an eagle.

— nina siegal, Bloomberg.com, "Cracking the Biggest Art Heist in History", 20 June 2017
Their bodies directly feed eagles, seals, and bears.

— ed yong, The Atlantic, "The Great Thing About Mass Wildebeest Drownings", 19 June 2017
Thomas made the putt for the eagle, the record and the temporary lead.

— paul daugherty, Cincinnati.com, "Paul Daugherty: Shocker – a good time had by all at U.S. Open", 18 June 2017
If the wind howls from the west, tee shots could roll out 400 yards, bringing eagles into play.

— teddy greenstein and chad yoder, chicagotribune.com, "Southeast Wisconsin's U.S. Open: A hole-by-hole tour", 12 June 2017
From the Apple Watch to eagle-eyed sensors, digital technology is going ever further to embed itself into your health club.

— rachel bachman, WSJ, "Your Gym’s Tech Wants to Know You Better", 12 June 2017
Eagles will perform two concerts at the Classic West and Classic East festivals in Los Angeles and New York in July.

— howard cohen, miamiherald, "Is it really classic rock if the whole band isn’t there? Foreigner’s Lou Gramm wants to know", 9 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'eagle'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of eagle

Middle English egle, from Anglo-French egle, aigle, from Latin aquila

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First Known Use: 13th century

See Words from the same year

Other Birds Terms

aerie, bunting, clutch, covey, hackle, ratite, rictus, ruff, skein, zygodactyl

eagle

verb ea·gle

Definition of eagle

eagled

;

eagling

play \ˈē-g(ə-)liŋ\

transitive verb
: to score an eagle on (a golf hole)

See eagle defined for English-language learners

Examples of eagle in a Sentence

She eagled the fourth hole.

Recent Examples of eagle from the Web

Close behind: Justin Thomas eagled 18 to get to 9-under 63, matching the major scoring record and breaking Johnny Miller’s U.S. Open record for low round in relation to par.

— seattle times staff, The Seattle Times, "Justin Thomas sets low scoring record at U.S. Open with 9-under 63", 17 June 2017
Paul Casey, also looking for his first major triumph, eagled his first hole and birdied the last for a 66.

— steve dimeglio, USA TODAY, "U.S. Open: Rickie Fowler has one-shot lead at Erin Hills with 65", 16 June 2017
Day eagled the par-5 seventh and curled in a 28-footer for birdie on 18.

— star-telegram, star-telegram.com, "Rats! Koepka’s late trouble leaves Hahn, Barnes atop Byron Nelson", 18 May 2017
Fowler eagled the second hole and had only one bogey, on the par-5 15th.

— mark whicker, Orange County Register, "Rickie Fowler joins the logjam atop Masters leaderboard", 7 Apr. 2017
Mickelson eagled the fourth and birdied the sixth, turning for home still trailing by one.

— sam borden, New York Times, "A Final Round for the Ages at the British Open", 17 July 2016
Another patient was a bald eagle from eastern Montana that suffered a gunshot wound to the wrist and earlier another bald eagled received treatment for lead poisoning, caused by eating game birds filled with lead from shotgun shells.

— National Geographic, "To Rescue or Not, That is the Question With Distressed Animals", 24 May 2016

First Known Use of eagle

1934

EAGLE Defined for English Language Learners

eagle

play

noun

Definition of eagle for English Language Learners

: a large bird that has very good eyesight and that kills other birds and animals for food
golf : a golf score of two strokes less than par on a hole