house sparrow

noun

: a sparrow (Passer domesticus) native to Eurasia that has been introduced worldwide and is found especially in urban and agricultural areas

called also English sparrow

Examples of house sparrow in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web House Sparrow Immigrants to North America, house sparrows are thought to have spread across the country with the help of freight trains. John Heasly, USA TODAY, 6 July 2023 The American robin is among a handful of wildlife species, including the house sparrow, gray squirrel, cottontail rabbit and coyote, able to thrive in a variety of habitats. Paul A. Smith, Journal Sentinel, 27 Apr. 2023 The condition mostly affected songbirds, including the American robin, blue jay, common grackle, yellowtail flicker, European starling, northern cardinal, house finch, house sparrow, Eastern bluebird, red-bellied woodpecker, and Carolina wren, but had also spread to woodpeckers. Christopher Arnott, courant.com, 20 Aug. 2021 Next, a child spotted a house sparrow lying dead on the other side of the fence, and this attracted far more attention than the live house sparrows in the nearby tree. Guest, Discover Magazine, 9 Jan. 2015 The house sparrow is the most abundant bird in the world, according to National Geographic, with a population of 1.6 billion. Mythili Devarakonda, USA TODAY, 20 Aug. 2022 That rank not only reflects the relationship of frequent combatant pairs such as the house sparrow and the blue jay, but also accurately predicts which bird will dominate when two distant species meet for the first time. Washington Post, 26 Nov. 2021 The songbirds most commonly affected include the American robin, blue jay, common grackle, yellowtail flicker, European starling, northern cardinal, house finch, house sparrow, Eastern bluebird, red-bellied woodpecker, and Carolina wren. courant.com, 10 Aug. 2021 The birds most commonly affected include the American robin, blue jay, common grackle, yellowtail flicker, European starling, northern cardinal, house finch, house sparrow, Eastern bluebird, red-bellied woodpecker, and Carolina wren. Christopher Arnott, courant.com, 8 July 2021 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'house sparrow.' 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

1653, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of house sparrow was in 1653

Dictionary Entries Near house sparrow

Cite this Entry

“House sparrow.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/house%20sparrow. Accessed 2 Oct. 2023.

Kids Definition

house sparrow

noun
: a sparrow native to Europe and Asia that has been introduced into and now occurs widely in the New World

called also English sparrow

More from Merriam-Webster on house sparrow

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