razorbill

noun

ra·​zor·​bill ˈrā-zər-ˌbil How to pronounce razorbill (audio)
: a North Atlantic auk (Alca torda) with the plumage black above and white below and a compressed sharp-edged bill

called also razor-billed auk

Examples of razorbill in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Birders on a boat trip off Tybee Island, Georgia, reported seeing 88 razorbills, Kratter said. Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA TODAY, 24 Feb. 2024 Birders on a boat trip off Tybee Island, South Carolina, reported seeing 88 razorbills, Kratter said. USA TODAY, 25 Feb. 2024 Martha’s Vineyard: A bald eagle at the Felix Neck Wildlife Sanctuary, an out of season razorbill and a common raven in Aquinnah, and an Acadian flycatcher and a Northern parula at the Waskosim’s Rock Reservation. Isabela Rocha, BostonGlobe.com, 8 July 2023 Race Point in Provincetown hosted hundreds of shearwaters including 2,000 great shearwaters, 800 Cory’s shearwaters, and 30 manx shearwaters, as well as a Pacific loon, a razorbill, a black tern, and an Arctic tern among large numbers of common and roseate terns. BostonGlobe.com, 30 July 2022 See all Example Sentences for razorbill 

Word History

First Known Use

1671, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of razorbill was in 1671

Dictionary Entries Near razorbill

Cite this Entry

“Razorbill.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/razorbill. Accessed 23 Dec. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on razorbill

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!