song sparrow

noun

: a North American sparrow (Melospiza melodia of the family Emberizidae) that is brownish above and white below with brownish streaks on the breast and that has a melodious song

Examples of song sparrow in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Expect to see resident birds such as the black phoebe, Cassin’s kingbird, California and spotted towhee, song sparrow and red-tailed, red-shoulder and Cooper’s hawks. Kim Janssen, Los Angeles Times, 12 Oct. 2023 The bird is a song sparrow. Chicago Tribune, 11 May 2022 The marsh-loving song sparrow uses its beak to stay cool. Joseph Castro, Discover Magazine, 29 July 2011 For one thing, in this study, there was only about a twofold difference in relative brain size between the species with the largest brain—the song sparrow—and the one with the smallest—the Swainson’s Thrush. Shahla Farzan, Scientific American, 25 Apr. 2022 The song sparrow will return and sing, the frogs will awake, the warm wind will blow again. Rivka Galchen, The New Yorker, 21 Feb. 2022

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

1810, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of song sparrow was in 1810

Dictionary Entries Near song sparrow

Cite this Entry

“Song sparrow.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/song%20sparrow. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

song sparrow

noun
: a common sparrow of North America that is brownish above and mostly white below and is noted for its sweet cheerful song

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