Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Characterized by migration; undergoing periodic migration.
- adjective Of or relating to a migration.
- adjective Roving; nomadic.
from The Century Dictionary.
- Given to or characterized by migration; roving or removing from place to place; unsettled: as, the pastoral tribes of uncivilized men are generally migratory; to lead a migratory life.
- Pertaining or relating to migration or to a tendency to migrate.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- adjective Removing regularly or occasionally from one region or climate to another.
- adjective Hence, roving; wandering; nomad
- adjective (Zoöl.) See
Locust . - adjective (Zoöl.) the American robin. See
Robin .
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective of birds, etc that
migrate
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective habitually moving from place to place especially in search of seasonal work
- adjective used of animals that move seasonally
Etymologies
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Examples
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We dream of birds, watch them pepper the sky in migratory lines that coil and uncoil such hard instincts in deep September.
The Other World Sam Rasnake 2010
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Even if that were possible (it's not) global warming still threatens to shift where crops CAN be grown (this is already happening, google research on massive shifts in migratory bird ranges - THEY know things are changing and adjust accordingly) and selfish Americans will let millions of (pick poor ethnic group here, probably African) die before building them nuke desalination plants, just wait and see.
Today's Video: Like None Other - Restored Moon Images to Help Future Moon Missions - NASA Watch 2009
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Last I recall, they are expecting a 12% increase in migratory bird deaths this year.
Waldo Jaquith - It’s time to tap into our vast offshore energy reserves. 2008
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The tags lasted from four weeks to seven months before falling out; altogether, they provided one of the most detailed sets of long-term migratory data for humpbacks ever collected.
Wired Top Stories Dave Mosher 2011
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65-Foreigners registered are required to inform the Registro Nacional de Extranjeros, of their changes in migratory status, nationality, maritial status, domicile, and employment activities, within 30 days of the change.
Inmigrado Status 2002
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65-Foreigners registered are required to inform the Registro Nacional de Extranjeros, of their changes in migratory status, nationality, maritial status, domicile, and employment activities, within 30 days of the change.
Inmigrado Status 2002
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65-Foreigners registered are required to inform the Registro Nacional de Extranjeros, of their changes in migratory status, nationality, maritial status, domicile, and employment activities, within 30 days of the change.
Inmigrado Status 2002
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Department of the Interior to tag migratory birds has been changed.
Think Progress » Mississippi school district cancels prom after same-sex couple planned to attend. 2010
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During what is called the migratory phase, the ants bivouac in a new site nearly every night.
Getting “Campy” 2008
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It's made them break a migratory pattern that goes back thousands of years.
Even Cowgirls Get The Blues Robbins, Tom 1976
uselessness commented on the word migratory
Where'd you get the coconuts?
We found them.
Found them? In Mercia? The coconut's tropical!
What do you mean?
Well, Mercia's a temperate zone!
The swallow may fly south with the sun, and the house martin or the plover may seek warmer climes in winter, yet these are not strangers to our land.
Are you suggesting coconuts migrate?
Not at all. They could be carried.
What? A swallow carrying a coconut?
He could grip it by the husk!
It's not a question of where he grips it! It's a simple matter of weight ratios! A five-ounce bird could not carry a one-pound coconut!
Well it doesn't matter! Will you go and tell your master that Arthur from the Court of Camelot is here?
Listen, in order to maintain air-speed velocity, a swallow needs to beat its wings forty-three times every second, right?
Please!
Am I right?
I'm not interested.
It could be carried by an African swallow!
Oh, yeah, an African swallow maybe, but not a European swallow, that's my point.
Oh, yeah, I agree with that.
Will you ask your master if he wants to join my Court at Camelot?
But then, of course, the African swallow is non-migratory, so they wouldn't be carrying a coconut anywhere.
Wait a minute! Supposing two European swallows carried it together?
No, they'd have to have it on a line.
Simple! They'd just use a strand of creeper!
Held under the dorsal guidance feathers?
Well why not?
February 15, 2007