early bird

noun

|Updated on: 15 Jun 2018

Definition of early bird

1 : an early riser

2 : one that arrives early and especially before possible competitors

Recent Examples of early bird from the Web

To understand what happened to those early birds, Daniel Field, a vertebrate paleontologist at the University of Bath in the United Kingdom, and his colleagues looked at three lines of evidence.

— elizabeth pennisi, Science | AAAS, "This quaillike creature was the only bird to survive the dinosaur-killing asteroid impact," 24 May 2018
The selection of everything from petunias to parsley is amazing (especially for early birds) and the prices are tough to beat. 7 a.m.-5 p.m.

— greg crawford, Detroit Free Press, "Plan your weekend: Allee Willis, Adam Carolla, Flower Day at Eastern Market," 16 May 2018
There will be coffee and doughnuts for early birds and pizza and other beverages for lunch.

— timothy finn, kansascity, "KC Record Store Day festivities to include live performance by Shooter Jennings | The Kansas City Star," 18 Apr. 2018
Now, high-tech analyses of four fossilized three-dimensional skulls provide tantalizing hints about what the beak of this iconic creature might have looked like as well as clues about the evolution of early birds.

— sid perkins, Scientific American, "New Fossils Offer Clues about a Primordial Bird Beak," 2 May 2018
Barnett says early birds can buy theirs on Wednesday, May 9, when Hogg open for Pharmakon at the Hideout.

— leor galil, Chicago Reader, "Hogg drop a new LP of tense, ritualistic throb ’n’ roll," 1 May 2018
Entry fee is $4 ($6 for early birds) and free for ages 12 and under.

— luann gibbs, Cincinnati.com, "Top 5 events in Cincinnati this weekend," 13 Apr. 2018
In the recruiting world, the early bird catches the worm.

— pat disabato, Daily Southtown, "Disabato: Bloom grad Austin Richie takes detour to Don Bosco on way to signing with Northern Illinois," 11 May 2018
The doors will swing open at 10 a.m. and early birds will be treated to 99-cent drink specials.

— brittany martin, Los Angeles Magazine, "Inside the Retro L.A. “Cantina” That Will Sell Thousands of Margaritas on Cinco de Mayo," 4 May 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of early bird

from the proverb, "the early bird catches the worm"

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1830

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

Learn More about early bird

See words that rhyme with early bird

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up early bird? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show

early bird

Definition of early bird

Recent Examples of early bird from the Web

Origin and Etymology of early bird

Learn More about early bird

Seen and Heard

WORD OF THE DAY

voracity

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Test Your Vocabulary

Words at Play

If the Shoe Fits

On the Disruption of 'Disrupt'

'Than': What Follows It and Why

Words We're Watching: 'B side'

Ask the Editors

Ghost Word

2017 Word of the Year: Behind the Scenes

Literally

Is Singular 'They' a Better Choice?

Word Games

Name More Food!

Yearbook Superlatives Quiz

How Strong Is Your Vocabulary?

Word Winder's CrossWinder

If the Shoe Fits

On the Disruption of 'Disrupt'

Trending: 'Asylum' Trends as Policies Draw Attention

Name More Food!

Ghost Word

early bird

Definition of early bird

Recent Examples of early bird from the Web

Origin and Etymology of early bird

Learn More about early bird

Seen and Heard

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games

If the Shoe Fits

On the Disruption of 'Disrupt'

Trending: 'Asylum' Trends as Policies Draw Attention

Name More Food!

Ghost Word