lyrebird

noun

lyre·​bird ˈlī(-ə)r-ˌbərd 

: either of two Australian passerine birds (genus Menura) distinguished in the male by very long tail feathers displayed in the shape of a lyre during courtship

Illustration of lyrebird

Examples of lyrebird in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The mating call of the male Albert’s lyrebird was differentiated into loud gronking and rhythmic gronking, and it was posited that the males’ shaking of stick piles or vine tangles may trick females into thinking predators are nearby. —Emily Harnett, Harper's Magazine, 26 Apr. 2024

For example, the start of winter in her local area in northern New South Wales is indicated by male lyrebirds singing. —Aarti Betigeri, Time, 14 Jan. 2020

The team noticed that species with particularly ancient lineages, such as lyrebirds, scrub-birds and New Zealand wrens, still build roofed structures—suggesting that ancestral passerine nests were domed. —Kat Long, Scientific American, 1 May 2017

Briefly, another fascinating surprise was the propensity of ravens to mimic human sounds, much like parrots or lyrebirds do. —James Floyd Kelly, WIRED, 12 July 2012

Word History

First Known Use

1834, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

lyrebird

noun

lyre·​bird -ˌbərd 

: either of two Australian birds of which the males have very long tail feathers displayed during courtship in the shape of a lyre