Definition of purple grackle
: a variety (Quiscalus quiscula stonei) of the common grackle that is found mainly in the coastal eastern U.S. and is distinguished by the variable, mainly purplish or bluish iridescence of the plumage
- I love to see a lone blackbird, like a purple grackle, in all his iridescent glory on my feeder, but if my backyard is covered in them, I'm glad when they move along.
- —Arlene Neal, The News-Topic (Lenoir, North Carolina), 30 Jan. 2013
- “Purple” grackles and “bronzed” grackles trend toward those iridescent hues and formerly were considered two separate species. The purple form is found mostly along the Atlantic Coast, and the bronzed in the interior U.S.
- —Joe Prentice, The Daily Camera (Boulder, Colorado), 12 Oct. 2007
