Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Any of several insectivorous songbirds of the genus Sayornis of the Americas, noted for the flicking motion of the tail.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun Any of several birds of the genus Sayornis

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Imitative of its song (influenced by the name Phoebe).]

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Examples

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  • "Young phoebes sometimes become entangled in the horsehairs which are used in the lining of their nest."

    "He tells of the phoebe-bird that betrays her nest on the porch by trying to hide it with moss in a similar fashion in the way all phoebe-birds hide their nests when they are built among rocks."

    August 2, 2015