catbird

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Pronunciation

• (British) IPA: /ˈkatbəːd/

Noun

catbird (plural catbirds)

1. Either of two species of American mockingbird relatives, the grey catbird, Dumetella carolinensis, and the black catbird, Melanoptila glabrirostris.
   • 1967, William Styron, The Confessions of Nat Turner, Vintage 2004, p. 200:

     I recall a catbird high in the water oak above, swinging like a rag amid the branches, jabbering and screeching [...].

2. Any of four species of Australasian bowerbirds of the genera Ailuroedus and Scenopoeetes.
   • 1985, Peter Carey, Illywhacker, Faber and Faber 2003, p. 185:

     The cat bird had a forlorn cry, like a whimpering child or the animal it is named for.

3. A babbler-like bird from eastern Africa, Parophasma galinieri.

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