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song sparrow
noun
: a North American sparrow (Melospiza melodia of the family Passerellidae) that is brownish above and white below with brownish streaks on the breast and that has a melodious song
Examples of song sparrow in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Their dense, mounded shape provides excellent nesting habitat for robins, song sparrows, cardinals, brown thrashers, indigo buntings, and catbirds.
—Anne Readel, Better Homes & Gardens, 11 Aug. 2024
Expect to see resident birds such as the black phoebe, Cassin’s kingbird, California and spotted towhee, song sparrow and red-tailed, red-shoulder and Cooper’s hawks.
—Kim Janssen, Los Angeles Times, 12 Oct. 2023
The bird is a song sparrow.
—Chicago Tribune, 11 May 2022
The marsh-loving song sparrow uses its beak to stay cool.
—Joseph Castro, Discover Magazine, 29 July 2011
For one thing, in this study, there was only about a twofold difference in relative brain size between the species with the largest brain—the song sparrow—and the one with the smallest—the Swainson’s Thrush.
—Shahla Farzan, Scientific American, 25 Apr. 2022
The song sparrow will return and sing, the frogs will awake, the warm wind will blow again.
—Rivka Galchen, The New Yorker, 21 Feb. 2022
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'song sparrow.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1810, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near song sparrow
Cite this Entry
“Song sparrow.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/song%20sparrow. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.
Kids Definition
song sparrow
noun
: a common sparrow of North America that is brownish above and mostly white below and is noted for its sweet cheerful song
More from Merriam-Webster on song sparrow
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about song sparrow
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