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lapwing |
3 definitions found From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Lapwing \Lap"wing`\, n. [OE. lapwynke leepwynke AS hle['a]pewince; hle['a]pan to leap, jump + (prob.) a word akin to AS wincian to wink, E. wink, AS wancol wavering; cf G. wanken to stagger, waver. See {Leap}, and {Wink}.] (Zo["o]l.) A small European bird of the Plover family ({Vanellus cristatus}, or {V. vanellus}). It has long and broad wings, and is noted for its rapid, irregular fight, upwards, downwards, and in circles. Its back is coppery or greenish bronze. Its eggs are the ``plover's eggs'' of the London market, esteemed a delicacy. It is called also {peewit}, {dastard plover}, and {wype}. The {gray lapwing} is the {Squatarola cinerea}. From WordNet r 1.6 [wn]: lapwing n : large crested Old World plover having wattles and spurs [syn: {green plover}, {peewit}, {pewit}] From Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary [easton]: Lapwing the name of an unclean bird, mentioned only in Lev. 11:19 and Deut. 14:18. The Hebrew name of this bird, _dukiphath_, has been generally regarded as denoting the hoope (Upupa epops), an onomatopoetic word derived from the cry of the bird, which resembles the word "hoop;" a bird not uncommon in Palestine. Others identify it with the English peewit.
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