guano

noun

gua·​no ˈgwä-(ˌ)nō 

: a fertilizer containing the accumulated excrement of seabirds or bats

broadly : excrement especially of seabirds or bats

Examples of guano in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The Guano Point viewpoint is named for miners who tried to remove nitrogen-rich bat guano from a nearby cave discovered in 1930. —Don Sweeney, Sacbee.com, 9 Nov. 2025

He was jolted out of his reverie by a whiff of guano in the breeze. —Ben McGrath, New Yorker, 3 Nov. 2025

If excluding the bats is a DIY job, clean up the roosting area afterwards so that guano doesn’t attract other pests such as cockroaches and flies. —Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 21 Oct. 2025

All that airborne guano is nature’s marine fertilizer, and scientists have been vastly underestimating how much seabird poop is actually fertilizing our oceans and coastlines. —Popular Science Team, Popular Science, 10 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Spanish, from Quechua wanu fertilizer, dung

First Known Use

1604, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for guano

• acknow
• aglow
• ago
• airglow
• aloe
• altho
• although
• ammo
• backflow
• backhoe
• banjo
• barbeau

Kids Definition

guano

noun

gua·​no ˈgwän-ō 

: a substance composed chiefly of the excrement of seabirds or bats and used as a fertilizer