Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
dictionary thesaurus

sooty tern

noun

Definition of sooty tern 

: a widely distributed tern (Sterna fuscata) of tropical oceans that is blackish above and white below

— called also wideawake

Examples of sooty tern in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

 Gilardi periodically comes to Wake to study the migratory seabirds, like the sooty terns, that stop here on their journey across the ocean. — CBS News, "Wake Island: Where America's day really begins," 14 Jan. 2018 The photo this week is of a sooty tern by Jeff Lemons Tropical systems are well known for their ability to displace seabirds caught up in the center of rotation. — Taylor Piephoff, charlotteobserver, "Look what the hurricane blew in," 22 Sep. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sooty tern.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of sooty tern

1785, in the meaning defined above

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about sooty tern

Share sooty tern

Resources for sooty tern

Cite Time Traveler Time Traveler! Explore the year a word first appeared

Dictionary Entries near sooty tern

sooty ore

sooty shearwater

sooty stripe

sooty tern

sooty wing

sop

SOP

Statistics for sooty tern

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for sooty tern

The first known use of sooty tern was in 1785

See more words from the same year

More from Merriam-Webster on sooty tern

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about sooty tern

Comments on sooty tern

What made you want to look up sooty tern? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

Show Comments  Hide Comments 

WORD OF THE DAY

de rigueur

required by fashion, etiquette, or custom

Get Word of the Day daily email!

Test Your Vocabulary

Words from Greek and Roman Mythology Quiz

  • the-triumph-of-venus-by-alessandro-magnasco
  • Boreal comes from the name of the ancient Greek god of which wind?
Name That Thing

Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!

TAKE THE QUIZ
Word Winder's CrossWinder

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games