Definition of peregrine
: having a tendency to wander
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Examples of peregrine in a Sentence
a loyal cadre of peregrine workers who follow the presidential candidate from primary to primary
Recent Examples of peregrine from the Web
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The park is home to lots of wildlife, including hundreds of birds like warblers, loons, bald eagles and peregrine falcons, which visit throughout the year.
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Idaho proclaimed the peregrine falcon its official raptor in 2004.
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The nearly mile-long bluff rises 400 feet above Lake Pepin (a wide spot in the Mississippi) and is one of only six bluffs on the river where peregrine falcons nest naturally.
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But this year — for the first time in their relationship — the peregrine falcon parents will be flying solo.
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There’s also a peregrine falcon that nests nearby and uses the terrace as its perch.
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Meanwhile, the peregrine falcon pair apparently has adjusted just fine to the tunes regularly played on the Campanile chimes near them.
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For nine years, a pair of peregrine falcons have made their home in the smokestacks at Dominion Energy’s Possum Point Power Station in Dumfries.
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The 2,500 acres of nearly undisturbed boreal forest is home to bald eagles, nesting peregrine falcons and rare Arctic and alpine plants.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'peregrine.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Did You Know?
The current meaning of "peregrine" has wandered a bit from its earlier meanings. The word originally meant "foreign," as did its Latin predecessor peregrinus. But even before "peregrine" appeared on its own in English, it was part of the name of that well-known bird of prey, the peregrine falcon. The bird's appellation derives from "falco peregrinus" - literally, "pilgrim falcon" in Medieval Latin. Peregrine falcons typically nest in high places, such as on cliff ledges or, in modern times, city skyscrapers. Because of the nests' inaccessibility, medieval falconers who wanted young peregrine falcons to train had capture them on their first flights or migratory "pilgrimages." That practice led to a new sense of "peregrine" ("engaged in or traveling on a pilgrimage"), which was later broadened to "wandering."
Origin and Etymology of peregrine
Middle French peregrin, from Medieval Latin peregrinus, from Latin, foreign — more at pilgrim
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