pheasant

noun

pheas·​ant ˈfe-zᵊnt 

plural pheasant or pheasants

1

: any of numerous large often long-tailed and brightly colored Old World gallinaceous birds (Phasianus and related genera of the family Phasianidae) including many raised as ornamental or game birds compare ring-necked pheasant

2

: any of various birds resembling a pheasant

Examples of pheasant in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Helen admired pheasants and kept their long, rusty feathers in her sewing room. — Tom Drury, Harpers Magazine, 29 Sep. 2026

Best for Thanksgiving Live stalks of millet, flax, and club wheat are accented with real pheasant leaves in this Thanksgiving-appropriate arrangement. — Vy Yang, Architectural Digest, 28 Sep. 2026

As pheasants dart around the 13,000-acre Althorp estate, Charles Spencer carefully climbs into a small rowboat on the edge of Althorp’s historic Round Oval lake and paddles to the center island. — Michelle Tauber, PEOPLE, 21 Sep. 2026

Unlike quail or pheasants, doves won't run ahead of a hunter wading through vegetation. — Bryan Hendricks, Arkansas Online, 6 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English fesaunt, from Anglo-French fesant, faisan, from Latin phasianus, from Greek (ornis) phasianos, from phasianos of the Phasis River, from Phasis, river in Colchis

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing pheasant

• ring-necked pheasant

Rhymes for pheasant

• peasant
• pleasant
• present
• omnipresent
• unpleasant

Kids Definition

pheasant

noun

pheas·​ant ˈfez-ᵊnt 

plural pheasant or pheasants

: any of numerous large long-tailed brightly colored birds that are related to the domestic chicken and many of which are raised as ornamental or game birds